diff options
Diffstat (limited to '895-h/895-h.htm')
| -rw-r--r-- | 895-h/895-h.htm | 31395 |
1 files changed, 31395 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/895-h/895-h.htm b/895-h/895-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..a283904 --- /dev/null +++ b/895-h/895-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,31395 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" +"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> +<head> +<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /> +<meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> +<title>History Of The Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire, Volume 6 by Edward Gibbon</title> +<link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> +<style type="text/css"> + + body { margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; background:#faebd0; text-align:justify} + P { text-indent: 1em; margin-top: .25em; margin-bottom: .25em; } + H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%; } + hr { width: 50%; text-align: center;} + .foot { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -3em; font-size: 90%; } + blockquote {font-size: 97%; font-style: italic; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} + .mynote {background-color: #DDE; color: #000; padding: .5em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 95%;} + .toc { margin-left: 10%; margin-bottom: .75em;} + .toc2 { margin-left: 20%;} + div.fig { display:block; margin:0 auto; text-align:center; } + .figleft {float: left; margin-left: 0%; margin-right: 1%;} + .figright {float: right; margin-right: 0%; margin-left: 1%;} + .pagenum {display:inline; font-size: 70%; font-style:normal; + margin: 0; padding: 0; position: absolute; right: 1%; + text-align: right;} + pre { font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 10%;} + +</style> + </head> + <body> +<pre> +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The History of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Edward Gibbon + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most +other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions +whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of +the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at +www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have +to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. + +Title: The History of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire + Volume 6 + +Author: Edward Gibbon + +Commentator: H. H. Milman + +Release Date: April, 1997 [EBook #895] +[Most recently updated: March 23, 2020] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: UTF-8 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE *** + + + + +Produced by David Reed, Dale R. Fredrickson and David Widger + + + + + + +</pre> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <h1> + HISTORY OF THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE + </h1> + <h2> + Edward Gibbon, Esq. + </h2> + <h2> + With Notes by the Rev. H. H. Milman + </h2> + <h3> + Vol. 6 + </h3> + <h4> + 1782 (Written), 1845 (Revised) + </h4> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <blockquote> + <p class="toc"> + <big><b>CONTENTS</b></big> + </p> + <p> + <br /> <a href="#linkA2HCH0001"> Chapter LIX: The Crusades.—Part I. + </a> <a href="#linkA2HCH0002"> Part II. </a> <a + href="#linkA2HCH0003"> Part III. </a> <br /> <br /> <a + href="#linkB2HCH0001"> Chapter LX: The Fourth Crusade.—Part I. + </a> <a href="#linkB2HCH0002"> Part II. </a> <a + href="#linkB2HCH0003"> Part III. </a> <br /> <br /> <a + href="#linkC2HCH0001"> Chapter LXI: Partition Of The Empire By The + French And Venetians.—Part I. </a> <a + href="#linkC2HCH0002"> Part II. </a> <a href="#linkC2HCH0003"> + Part III. </a> <a href="#linkC2HCH0004"> Part IV. </a><br /> + <br /> <a href="#linkD2HCH0001"> Chapter LXII: Greek Emperors Of Nice And + Constantinople.—Part I. </a> <a href="#linkD2HCH0002"> + Part II. </a> <a href="#linkD2HCH0003"> Part III. </a><br /> + <br /> <a href="#linkE2HCH0001"> Chapter LXIII: Civil Wars And The Ruin + Of The Greek Empire.—Part I. </a> <a + href="#linkE2HCH0002"> Part II. </a><br /> <br /> <a href="#linkF2HCH0001"> + Chapter LXIV: Moguls, Ottoman Turks.—Part I. </a> <a + href="#linkF2HCH0002"> Part II. </a> <a href="#linkF2HCH0003"> + Part III. </a> <a href="#linkF2HCH0004"> Part IV. </a><br /> + <br /> <a href="#linkG2HCH0001"> Chapter LXV: Elevation Of Timour Or + Tamerlane, And His Death.—Part I. </a> <a + href="#linkG2HCH0002"> Part II. </a> <a href="#linkG2HCH0003"> + Part III. </a><br /> <br /> <a href="#linkH2HCH0001"> Chapter LXVI: Union + Of The Greek And Latin Churches.—Part I. </a> <a + href="#linkH2HCH0002"> Part II. </a> <a href="#linkH2HCH0003"> + Part III. </a> <a href="#linkH2HCH0004"> Part IV. </a><br /> + <br /> <a href="#linkI2HCH0001"> Chapter LXVII: Schism Of The Greeks And + Latins.—Part I. </a> <a href="#linkI2HCH0002"> Part + II. </a><br /> <br /> <a href="#linkJ2HCH0001"> Chapter LXVIII: Reign Of + Mahomet The Second, Extinction Of Eastern Empire.—Part I. </a> + <a href="#linkJ2HCH0002"> Part II. </a> <a + href="#linkJ2HCH0003"> Part III. </a> <a + href="#linkJ2HCH0004"> Part IV. </a><br /> <br /> <a href="#linkK2HCH0001"> + Chapter LXIX: State Of Rome From The Twelfth Century.—Part I. </a> + <a href="#linkK2HCH0002"> Part II. </a> <a + href="#linkK2HCH0003"> Part III. </a> <a + href="#linkK2HCH0004"> Part IV. </a><br /> <br /> <a href="#linkL2HCH0001"> + Chapter LXX: Final Settlement Of The Ecclesiastical State.—Part I. + </a> <a href="#linkL2HCH0002"> Part II. </a> <a + href="#linkL2HCH0003"> Part III. </a> <a + href="#linkL2HCH0004"> Part IV. </a><br /> <br /> <a href="#linkM2HCH0001"> + Chapter LXXI: Prospect Of The Ruins Of Rome In The Fifteenth Century.—Part + I. </a> <a href="#linkM2HCH0002"> Part II </a><br /> + </p> + </blockquote> + <p> + <a name="linkA2HCH0001" id="linkA2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LIX: The Crusades.—Part I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Preservation Of The Greek Empire.—Numbers, Passage, And + Event, Of The Second And Third Crusades.—St. Bernard.— + Reign Of Saladin In Egypt And Syria.—His Conquest Of + Jerusalem.—Naval Crusades.—Richard The First Of England.— + Pope Innocent The Third; And The Fourth And Fifth Crusades.— + The Emperor Frederic The Second.—Louis The Ninth Of + France; And The Two Last Crusades.—Expulsion Of The Latins + Or Franks By The Mamelukes. +</pre> + <p> + In a style less grave than that of history, I should perhaps compare the + emperor Alexius <a href="#linkAnote-1" name="linkAnoteref-1" + id="linkAnoteref-1">1</a> to the jackal, who is said to follow the steps, + and to devour the leavings, of the lion. Whatever had been his fears and + toils in the passage of the first crusade, they were amply recompensed by + the subsequent benefits which he derived from the exploits of the Franks. + His dexterity and vigilance secured their first conquest of Nice; and from + this threatening station the Turks were compelled to evacuate the + neighborhood of Constantinople. While the crusaders, with blind valor, + advanced into the midland countries of Asia, the crafty Greek improved the + favorable occasion when the emirs of the sea-coast were recalled to the + standard of the sultan. The Turks were driven from the Isles of Rhodes and + Chios: the cities of Ephesus and Smyrna, of Sardes, Philadelphia, and + Laodicea, were restored to the empire, which Alexius enlarged from the + Hellespont to the banks of the Mæander, and the rocky shores of Pamphylia. + The churches resumed their splendor: the towns were rebuilt and fortified; + and the desert country was peopled with colonies of Christians, who were + gently removed from the more distant and dangerous frontier. In these + paternal cares, we may forgive Alexius, if he forgot the deliverance of + the holy sepulchre; but, by the Latins, he was stigmatized with the foul + reproach of treason and desertion. They had sworn fidelity and obedience + to his throne; but <i>he</i> had promised to assist their enterprise in + person, or, at least, with his troops and treasures: his base retreat + dissolved their obligations; and the sword, which had been the instrument + of their victory, was the pledge and title of their just independence. It + does not appear that the emperor attempted to revive his obsolete claims + over the kingdom of Jerusalem; <a href="#linkAnote-2" name="linkAnoteref-2" + id="linkAnoteref-2">2</a> but the borders of Cilicia and Syria were more + recent in his possession, and more accessible to his arms. The great army + of the crusaders was annihilated or dispersed; the principality of Antioch + was left without a head, by the surprise and captivity of Bohemond; his + ransom had oppressed him with a heavy debt; and his Norman followers were + insufficient to repel the hostilities of the Greeks and Turks. In this + distress, Bohemond embraced a magnanimous resolution, of leaving the + defence of Antioch to his kinsman, the faithful Tancred; of arming the + West against the Byzantine empire; and of executing the design which he + inherited from the lessons and example of his father Guiscard. His + embarkation was clandestine: and, if we may credit a tale of the princess + Anne, he passed the hostile sea closely secreted in a coffin. <a + href="#linkAnote-3" name="linkAnoteref-3" id="linkAnoteref-3">3</a> But + his reception in France was dignified by the public applause, and his + marriage with the king's daughter: his return was glorious, since the + bravest spirits of the age enlisted under his veteran command; and he + repassed the Adriatic at the head of five thousand horse and forty + thousand foot, assembled from the most remote climates of Europe. <a + href="#linkAnote-4" name="linkAnoteref-4" id="linkAnoteref-4">4</a> The + strength of Durazzo, and prudence of Alexius, the progress of famine and + approach of winter, eluded his ambitious hopes; and the venal confederates + were seduced from his standard. A treaty of peace <a href="#linkAnote-5" + name="linkAnoteref-5" id="linkAnoteref-5">5</a> suspended the fears of the + Greeks; and they were finally delivered by the death of an adversary, whom + neither oaths could bind, nor dangers could appal, nor prosperity could + satiate. His children succeeded to the principality of Antioch; but the + boundaries were strictly defined, the homage was clearly stipulated, and + the cities of Tarsus and Malmistra were restored to the Byzantine + emperors. Of the coast of Anatolia, they possessed the entire circuit from + Trebizond to the Syrian gates. The Seljukian dynasty of Roum <a + href="#linkAnote-6" name="linkAnoteref-6" id="linkAnoteref-6">6</a> was + separated on all sides from the sea and their Mussulman brethren; the + power of the sultan was shaken by the victories and even the defeats of + the Franks; and after the loss of Nice, they removed their throne to Cogni + or Iconium, an obscure and in land town above three hundred miles from + Constantinople. <a href="#linkAnote-7" name="linkAnoteref-7" + id="linkAnoteref-7">7</a> Instead of trembling for their capital, the + Comnenian princes waged an offensive war against the Turks, and the first + crusade prevented the fall of the declining empire. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-1" id="linkAnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ Anna Comnena relates her + father's conquests in Asia Minor Alexiad, l. xi. p. 321—325, l. xiv. + p. 419; his Cilician war against Tancred and Bohemond, p. 328—324; + the war of Epirus, with tedious prolixity, l. xii. xiii. p. 345—406; + the death of Bohemond, l. xiv. p. 419.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-2" id="linkAnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ The kings of Jerusalem + submitted, however, to a nominal dependence, and in the dates of their + inscriptions, (one is still legible in the church of Bethlem,) they + respectfully placed before their own the name of the reigning emperor, + (Ducange, Dissertations sur Joinville xxvii. p. 319.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-3" id="linkAnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ Anna Comnena adds, that, + to complete the imitation, he was shut up with a dead cock; and + condescends to wonder how the Barbarian could endure the confinement and + putrefaction. This absurd tale is unknown to the Latins. * Note: The Greek + writers, in general, Zonaras, p. 2, 303, and Glycas, p. 334 agree in this + story with the princess Anne, except in the absurd addition of the dead + cock. Ducange has already quoted some instances where a similar stratagem + had been adopted by <i>Norman</i> princes. On this authority Wilken + inclines to believe the fact. Appendix to vol. ii. p. 14.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-4" id="linkAnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ 'Apo QulhV in the + Byzantine geography, must mean England; yet we are more credibly informed, + that our Henry I. would not suffer him to levy any troops in his kingdom, + (Ducange, Not. ad Alexiad. p. 41.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-5" id="linkAnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ The copy of the treaty + (Alexiad. l. xiii. p. 406—416) is an original and curious piece, + which would require, and might afford, a good map of the principality of + Antioch.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-6" id="linkAnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ See, in the learned work + of M. De Guignes, (tom. ii. part ii.,) the history of the Seljukians of + Iconium, Aleppo, and Damascus, as far as it may be collected from the + Greeks, Latins, and Arabians. The last are ignorant or regardless of the + affairs of <i>Roum</i>.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-7" id="linkAnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ Iconium is mentioned as a + station by Xenophon, and by Strabo, with an ambiguous title of KwmopoliV, + (Cellarius, tom. ii. p. 121.) Yet St. Paul found in that place a multitude + (plhqoV) of Jews and Gentiles. under the corrupt name of <i>Kunijah</i>, + it is described as a great city, with a river and garden, three leagues + from the mountains, and decorated (I know not why) with Plato's tomb, + (Abulfeda, tabul. xvii. p. 303 vers. Reiske; and the Index Geographicus of + Schultens from Ibn Said.)] + </p> + <p> + In the twelfth century, three great emigrations marched by land from the + West for the relief of Palestine. The soldiers and pilgrims of Lombardy, + France, and Germany were excited by the example and success of the first + crusade. <a href="#linkAnote-8" name="linkAnoteref-8" id="linkAnoteref-8">8</a> + Forty-eight years after the deliverance of the holy sepulchre, the + emperor, and the French king, Conrad the Third and Louis the Seventh, + undertook the second crusade to support the falling fortunes of the + Latins. <a href="#linkAnote-9" name="linkAnoteref-9" id="linkAnoteref-9">9</a> + A grand division of the third crusade was led by the emperor Frederic + Barbarossa, <a href="#linkAnote-10" name="linkAnoteref-10" + id="linkAnoteref-10">10</a> who sympathized with his brothers of France + and England in the common loss of Jerusalem. These three expeditions may + be compared in their resemblance of the greatness of numbers, their + passage through the Greek empire, and the nature and event of their + Turkish warfare, and a brief parallel may save the repetition of a tedious + narrative. However splendid it may seem, a regular story of the crusades + would exhibit the perpetual return of the same causes and effects; and the + frequent attempts for the defence or recovery of the Holy Land would + appear so many faint and unsuccessful copies of the original. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-8" id="linkAnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ For this supplement to the + first crusade, see Anna Comnena, (Alexias, l. xi. p. 331, &c., and the + viiith book of Albert Aquensis.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-9" id="linkAnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ For the second crusade, of + Conrad III. and Louis VII., see William of Tyre, (l. xvi. c. 18—19,) + Otho of Frisingen, (l. i. c. 34—45 59, 60,) Matthew Paris, (Hist. + Major. p. 68,) Struvius, (Corpus Hist Germanicæ, p. 372, 373,) Scriptores + Rerum Francicarum à Duchesne tom. iv.: Nicetas, in Vit. Manuel, l. i. c. + 4, 5, 6, p. 41—48, Cinnamus l. ii. p. 41—49.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-10" id="linkAnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ For the third crusade, + of Frederic Barbarossa, see Nicetas in Isaac Angel. l. ii. c. 3—8, + p. 257—266. Struv. (Corpus. Hist. Germ. p. 414,) and two historians, + who probably were spectators, Tagino, (in Scriptor. Freher. tom. i. p. 406—416, + edit Struv.,) and the Anonymus de Expeditione Asiaticâ Fred. I. (in + Canisii Antiq. Lection. tom. iii. p. ii. p. 498—526, edit. + Basnage.)] + </p> + <p> + I. Of the swarms that so closely trod in the footsteps of the first + pilgrims, the chiefs were equal in rank, though unequal in fame and merit, + to Godfrey of Bouillon and his fellow-adventurers. At their head were + displayed the banners of the dukes of Burgundy, Bavaria, and Aquitain; the + first a descendant of Hugh Capet, the second, a father of the Brunswick + line: the archbishop of Milan, a temporal prince, transported, for the + benefit of the Turks, the treasures and ornaments of his church and + palace; and the veteran crusaders, Hugh the Great and Stephen of Chartres, + returned to consummate their unfinished vow. The huge and disorderly + bodies of their followers moved forward in two columns; and if the first + consisted of two hundred and sixty thousand persons, the second might + possibly amount to sixty thousand horse and one hundred thousand foot. <a + href="#linkAnote-11" name="linkAnoteref-11" id="linkAnoteref-11">11</a> <a + href="#linkAnote-111" name="linkAnoteref-111" id="linkAnoteref-111">111</a> + The armies of the second crusade might have claimed the conquest of Asia; + the nobles of France and Germany were animated by the presence of their + sovereigns; and both the rank and personal character of Conrad and Louis + gave a dignity to their cause, and a discipline to their force, which + might be vainly expected from the feudatory chiefs. The cavalry of the + emperor, and that of the king, was each composed of seventy thousand + knights, and their immediate attendants in the field; <a + href="#linkAnote-12" name="linkAnoteref-12" id="linkAnoteref-12">12</a> + and if the light-armed troops, the peasant infantry, the women and + children, the priests and monks, be rigorously excluded, the full account + will scarcely be satisfied with four hundred thousand souls. The West, + from Rome to Britain, was called into action; the kings of Poland and + Bohemia obeyed the summons of Conrad; and it is affirmed by the Greeks and + Latins, that, in the passage of a strait or river, the Byzantine agents, + after a tale of nine hundred thousand, desisted from the endless and + formidable computation. <a href="#linkAnote-13" name="linkAnoteref-13" + id="linkAnoteref-13">13</a> In the third crusade, as the French and + English preferred the navigation of the Mediterranean, the host of + Frederic Barbarossa was less numerous. Fifteen thousand knights, and as + many squires, were the flower of the German chivalry: sixty thousand + horse, and one hundred thousand foot, were mustered by the emperor in the + plains of Hungary; and after such repetitions, we shall no longer be + startled at the six hundred thousand pilgrims, which credulity has + ascribed to this last emigration. <a href="#linkAnote-14" + name="linkAnoteref-14" id="linkAnoteref-14">14</a> Such extravagant + reckonings prove only the astonishment of contemporaries; but their + astonishment most strongly bears testimony to the existence of an + enormous, though indefinite, multitude. The Greeks might applaud their + superior knowledge of the arts and stratagems of war, but they confessed + the strength and courage of the French cavalry, and the infantry of the + Germans; <a href="#linkAnote-15" name="linkAnoteref-15" + id="linkAnoteref-15">15</a> and the strangers are described as an iron + race, of gigantic stature, who darted fire from their eyes, and spilt + blood like water on the ground. Under the banners of Conrad, a troop of + females rode in the attitude and armor of men; and the chief of these + Amazons, from her gilt spurs and buskins, obtained the epithet of the + Golden-footed Dame. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-11" id="linkAnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ Anne, who states these + later swarms at 40,000 horse and 100,000 foot, calls them Normans, and + places at their head two brothers of Flanders. The Greeks were strangely + ignorant of the names, families, and possessions of the Latin princes.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-111" id="linkAnote-111"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 111 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-111">return</a>)<br /> [ It was this army of + pilgrims, the first body of which was headed by the archbishop of Milan + and Count Albert of Blandras, which set forth on the wild, yet, with a + more disciplined army, not impolitic, enterprise of striking at the heart + of the Mahometan power, by attacking the sultan in Bagdad. For their + adventures and fate, see Wilken, vol. ii. p. 120, &c., Michaud, book + iv.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-12" id="linkAnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ William of Tyre, and + Matthew Paris, reckon 70,000 loricati in each of the armies.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-13" id="linkAnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ The imperfect + enumeration is mentioned by Cinnamus, (ennenhkonta muriadeV,) and + confirmed by Odo de Diogilo apud Ducange ad Cinnamum, with the more + precise sum of 900,556. Why must therefore the version and comment suppose + the modest and insufficient reckoning of 90,000? Does not Godfrey of + Viterbo (Pantheon, p. xix. in Muratori, tom. vii. p. 462) exclaim? ——Numerum + si poscere quæras, Millia millena militis agmen erat.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-14" id="linkAnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ This extravagant account + is given by Albert of Stade, (apud Struvium, p. 414;) my calculation is + borrowed from Godfrey of Viterbo, Arnold of Lubeck, apud eundem, and + Bernard Thesaur. (c. 169, p. 804.) The original writers are silent. The + Mahometans gave him 200,000, or 260,000, men, (Bohadin, in Vit. Saladin, + p. 110.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-15" id="linkAnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ I must observe, that, in + the second and third crusades, the subjects of Conrad and Frederic are + styled by the Greeks and Orientals <i>Alamanni</i>. The Lechi and Tzechi + of Cinnamus are the Poles and Bohemians; and it is for the French that he + reserves the ancient appellation of Germans. He likewise names the + Brittioi, or Britannoi. * Note: * He names both—Brittioi te kai + Britanoi.—M.] + </p> + <p> + II. The number and character of the strangers was an object of terror to + the effeminate Greeks, and the sentiment of fear is nearly allied to that + of hatred. This aversion was suspended or softened by the apprehension of + the Turkish power; and the invectives of the Latins will not bias our more + candid belief, that the emperor Alexius dissembled their insolence, eluded + their hostilities, counselled their rashness, and opened to their ardor + the road of pilgrimage and conquest. But when the Turks had been driven + from Nice and the sea-coast, when the Byzantine princes no longer dreaded + the distant sultans of Cogni, they felt with purer indignation the free + and frequent passage of the western Barbarians, who violated the majesty, + and endangered the safety, of the empire. The second and third crusades + were undertaken under the reign of Manuel Comnenus and Isaac Angelus. Of + the former, the passions were always impetuous, and often malevolent; and + the natural union of a cowardly and a mischievous temper was exemplified + in the latter, who, without merit or mercy, could punish a tyrant, and + occupy his throne. It was secretly, and perhaps tacitly, resolved by the + prince and people to destroy, or at least to discourage, the pilgrims, by + every species of injury and oppression; and their want of prudence and + discipline continually afforded the pretence or the opportunity. The + Western monarchs had stipulated a safe passage and fair market in the + country of their Christian brethren; the treaty had been ratified by oaths + and hostages; and the poorest soldier of Frederic's army was furnished + with three marks of silver to defray his expenses on the road. But every + engagement was violated by treachery and injustice; and the complaints of + the Latins are attested by the honest confession of a Greek historian, who + has dared to prefer truth to his country. <a href="#linkAnote-16" + name="linkAnoteref-16" id="linkAnoteref-16">16</a> Instead of a hospitable + reception, the gates of the cities, both in Europe and Asia, were closely + barred against the crusaders; and the scanty pittance of food was let down + in baskets from the walls. Experience or foresight might excuse this timid + jealousy; but the common duties of humanity prohibited the mixture of + chalk, or other poisonous ingredients, in the bread; and should Manuel be + acquitted of any foul connivance, he is guilty of coining base money for + the purpose of trading with the pilgrims. In every step of their march + they were stopped or misled: the governors had private orders to fortify + the passes and break down the bridges against them: the stragglers were + pillaged and murdered: the soldiers and horses were pierced in the woods + by arrows from an invisible hand; the sick were burnt in their beds; and + the dead bodies were hung on gibbets along the highways. These injuries + exasperated the champions of the cross, who were not endowed with + evangelical patience; and the Byzantine princes, who had provoked the + unequal conflict, promoted the embarkation and march of these formidable + guests. On the verge of the Turkish frontier Barbarossa spared the guilty + Philadelphia, <a href="#linkAnote-17" name="linkAnoteref-17" + id="linkAnoteref-17">17</a> rewarded the hospitable Laodicea, and deplored + the hard necessity that had stained his sword with any drops of Christian + blood. In their intercourse with the monarchs of Germany and France, the + pride of the Greeks was exposed to an anxious trial. They might boast that + on the first interview the seat of Louis was a low stool, beside the + throne of Manuel; <a href="#linkAnote-18" name="linkAnoteref-18" + id="linkAnoteref-18">18</a> but no sooner had the French king transported + his army beyond the Bosphorus, than he refused the offer of a second + conference, unless his brother would meet him on equal terms, either on + the sea or land. With Conrad and Frederic, the ceremonial was still nicer + and more difficult: like the successors of Constantine, they styled + themselves emperors of the Romans; <a href="#linkAnote-19" + name="linkAnoteref-19" id="linkAnoteref-19">19</a> and firmly maintained + the purity of their title and dignity. The first of these representatives + of Charlemagne would only converse with Manuel on horseback in the open + field; the second, by passing the Hellespont rather than the Bosphorus, + declined the view of Constantinople and its sovereign. An emperor, who had + been crowned at Rome, was reduced in the Greek epistles to the humble + appellation of <i>Rex</i>, or prince, of the Alemanni; and the vain and + feeble Angelus affected to be ignorant of the name of one of the greatest + men and monarchs of the age. While they viewed with hatred and suspicion + the Latin pilgrims the Greek emperors maintained a strict, though secret, + alliance with the Turks and Saracens. Isaac Angelus complained, that by + his friendship for the great Saladin he had incurred the enmity of the + Franks; and a mosque was founded at Constantinople for the public exercise + of the religion of Mahomet. <a href="#linkAnote-20" name="linkAnoteref-20" + id="linkAnoteref-20">20</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-16" id="linkAnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas was a child at + the second crusade, but in the third he commanded against the Franks the + important post of Philippopolis. Cinnamus is infected with national + prejudice and pride.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-17" id="linkAnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ The conduct of the + Philadelphians is blamed by Nicetas, while the anonymous German accuses + the rudeness of his countrymen, (culpâ nostrâ.) History would be pleasant, + if we were embarrassed only by <i>such</i> contradictions. It is likewise + from Nicetas, that we learn the pious and humane sorrow of Frederic.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-18" id="linkAnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ Cqamalh edra, which + Cinnamus translates into Latin by the word Sellion. Ducange works very + hard to save his king and country from such ignominy, (sur Joinville, + dissertat. xxvii. p. 317—320.) Louis afterwards insisted on a + meeting in mari ex æquo, not ex equo, according to the laughable readings + of some MSS.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-19" id="linkAnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ Ego Romanorum imperator + sum, ille Romaniorum, (Anonym Canis. p. 512.) The public and historical + style of the Greeks was Rhx... <i>princeps</i>. Yet Cinnamus owns, that + 'Imperatwr is synonymous to BasileuV.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-20" id="linkAnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ In the Epistles of + Innocent III., (xiii. p. 184,) and the History of Bohadin, (p. 129, 130,) + see the views of a pope and a cadhi on this <i>singular</i>toleration.] + </p> + <p> + III. The swarms that followed the first crusade were destroyed in Anatolia + by famine, pestilence, and the Turkish arrows; and the princes only + escaped with some squadrons of horse to accomplish their lamentable + pilgrimage. A just opinion may be formed of their knowledge and humanity; + of their knowledge, from the design of subduing Persia and Chorasan in + their way to Jerusalem; <a href="#linkAnote-201" name="linkAnoteref-201" + id="linkAnoteref-201">201</a> of their humanity, from the massacre of the + Christian people, a friendly city, who came out to meet them with palms + and crosses in their hands. The arms of Conrad and Louis were less cruel + and imprudent; but the event of the second crusade was still more ruinous + to Christendom; and the Greek Manuel is accused by his own subjects of + giving seasonable intelligence to the sultan, and treacherous guides to + the Latin princes. Instead of crushing the common foe, by a double attack + at the same time but on different sides, the Germans were urged by + emulation, and the French were retarded by jealousy. Louis had scarcely + passed the Bosphorus when he was met by the returning emperor, who had + lost the greater part of his army in glorious, but unsuccessful, actions + on the banks of the Mæander. The contrast of the pomp of his rival + hastened the retreat of Conrad: <a href="#linkAnote-202" + name="linkAnoteref-202" id="linkAnoteref-202">202</a> the desertion of his + independent vassals reduced him to his hereditary troops; and he borrowed + some Greek vessels to execute by sea the pilgrimage of Palestine. Without + studying the lessons of experience, or the nature of the war, the king of + France advanced through the same country to a similar fate. The vanguard, + which bore the royal banner and the oriflamme of St. Denys, <a + href="#linkAnote-21" name="linkAnoteref-21" id="linkAnoteref-21">21</a> + had doubled their march with rash and inconsiderate speed; and the rear, + which the king commanded in person, no longer found their companions in + the evening camp. In darkness and disorder, they were encompassed, + assaulted, and overwhelmed, by the innumerable host of Turks, who, in the + art of war, were superior to the Christians of the twelfth century. <a + href="#linkAnote-211" name="linkAnoteref-211" id="linkAnoteref-211">211</a> + Louis, who climbed a tree in the general discomfiture, was saved by his + own valor and the ignorance of his adversaries; and with the dawn of day + he escaped alive, but almost alone, to the camp of the vanguard. But + instead of pursuing his expedition by land, he was rejoiced to shelter the + relics of his army in the friendly seaport of Satalia. From thence he + embarked for Antioch; but so penurious was the supply of Greek vessels, + that they could only afford room for his knights and nobles; and the + plebeian crowd of infantry was left to perish at the foot of the + Pamphylian hills. The emperor and the king embraced and wept at Jerusalem; + their martial trains, the remnant of mighty armies, were joined to the + Christian powers of Syria, and a fruitless siege of Damascus was the final + effort of the second crusade. Conrad and Louis embarked for Europe with + the personal fame of piety and courage; but the Orientals had braved these + potent monarchs of the Franks, with whose names and military forces they + had been so often threatened. <a href="#linkAnote-22" + name="linkAnoteref-22" id="linkAnoteref-22">22</a> Perhaps they had still + more to fear from the veteran genius of Frederic the First, who in his + youth had served in Asia under his uncle Conrad. Forty campaigns in + Germany and Italy had taught Barbarossa to command; and his soldiers, even + the princes of the empire, were accustomed under his reign to obey. As + soon as he lost sight of Philadelphia and Laodicea, the last cities of the + Greek frontier, he plunged into the salt and barren desert, a land (says + the historian) of horror and tribulation. <a href="#linkAnote-23" + name="linkAnoteref-23" id="linkAnoteref-23">23</a> During twenty days, + every step of his fainting and sickly march was besieged by the + innumerable hordes of Turkmans, <a href="#linkAnote-24" + name="linkAnoteref-24" id="linkAnoteref-24">24</a> whose numbers and fury + seemed after each defeat to multiply and inflame. The emperor continued to + struggle and to suffer; and such was the measure of his calamities, that + when he reached the gates of Iconium, no more than one thousand knights + were able to serve on horseback. By a sudden and resolute assault he + defeated the guards, and stormed the capital of the sultan, <a + href="#linkAnote-25" name="linkAnoteref-25" id="linkAnoteref-25">25</a> + who humbly sued for pardon and peace. The road was now open, and Frederic + advanced in a career of triumph, till he was unfortunately drowned in a + petty torrent of Cilicia. <a href="#linkAnote-26" name="linkAnoteref-26" + id="linkAnoteref-26">26</a> The remainder of his Germans was consumed by + sickness and desertion: and the emperor's son expired with the greatest + part of his Swabian vassals at the siege of Acre. Among the Latin heroes, + Godfrey of Bouillon and Frederic Barbarossa could alone achieve the + passage of the Lesser Asia; yet even their success was a warning; and in + the last and most experienced age of the crusades, every nation preferred + the sea to the toils and perils of an inland expedition. <a + href="#linkAnote-27" name="linkAnoteref-27" id="linkAnoteref-27">27</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-201" id="linkAnote-201"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 201 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-201">return</a>)<br /> [ This was the design of + the pilgrims under the archbishop of Milan. See Anote, p. 102.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-202" id="linkAnote-202"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 202 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-202">return</a>)<br /> [ Conrad had advanced + with part of his army along a central road, between that on the coast and + that which led to Iconium. He had been betrayed by the Greeks, his army + destroyed without a battle. Wilken, vol. iii. p. 165. Michaud, vol. ii. p. + 156. Conrad advanced again with Louis as far as Ephesus, and from thence, + at the invitation of Manuel, returned to Constantinople. It was Louis who, + at the passage of the Mæander, was engaged in a "glorious action." Wilken, + vol. iii. p. 179. Michaud vol. ii. p. 160. Gibbon followed Nicetas.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-21" id="linkAnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ As counts of Vexin, the + kings of France were the vassals and advocates of the monastery of St. + Denys. The saint's peculiar banner, which they received from the abbot, + was of a square form, and a red or <i>flaming</i> color. The <i>oriflamme</i> + appeared at the head of the French armies from the xiith to the xvth + century, (Ducange sur Joinville, Dissert. xviii. p. 244—253.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-211" id="linkAnote-211"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 211 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-211">return</a>)<br /> [ They descended the + heights to a beautiful valley which by beneath them. The Turks seized the + heights which separated the two divisions of the army. The modern + historians represent differently the act to which Louis owed his safety, + which Gibbon has described by the undignified phrase, "he climbed a tree." + According to Michaud, vol. ii. p. 164, the king got upon a rock, with his + back against a tree; according to Wilken, vol. iii., he dragged himself up + to the top of the rock by the roots of a tree, and continued to defend + himself till nightfall.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-22" id="linkAnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ The original French + histories of the second crusade are the Gesta Ludovici VII. published in + the ivth volume of Duchesne's collection. The same volume contains many + original letters of the king, of Suger his minister, &c., the best + documents of authentic history.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-23" id="linkAnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ Terram horroris et + salsuginis, terram siccam sterilem, inamnam. Anonym. Canis. p. 517. The + emphatic language of a sufferer.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-24" id="linkAnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ Gens innumera, + sylvestris, indomita, prædones sine ductore. The sultan of Cogni might + sincerely rejoice in their defeat. Anonym. Canis. p. 517, 518.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-25" id="linkAnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ See, in the anonymous + writer in the Collection of Canisius, Tagino and Bohadin, (Vit. Saladin. + p. 119, 120,) the ambiguous conduct of Kilidge Arslan, sultan of Cogni, + who hated and feared both Saladin and Frederic.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-26" id="linkAnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ The desire of comparing + two great men has tempted many writers to drown Frederic in the River + Cydnus, in which Alexander so imprudently bathed, (Q. Curt. l. iii c. 4, + 5.) But, from the march of the emperor, I rather judge, that his Saleph is + the Calycadnus, a stream of less fame, but of a longer course. * + </p> + <p> + Note: * It is now called the Girama: its course is described in M'Donald + Kinneir's Travels.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-27" id="linkAnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ Marinus Sanutus, A.D. + 1321, lays it down as a precept, Quod stolus ecclesiæ per terram + nullatenus est ducenda. He resolves, by the divine aid, the objection, or + rather exception, of the first crusade, (Secreta Fidelium Crucis, l. ii. + pars ii. c. i. p. 37.)] + </p> + <p> + The enthusiasm of the first crusade is a natural and simple event, while + hope was fresh, danger untried, and enterprise congenial to the spirit of + the times. But the obstinate perseverance of Europe may indeed excite our + pity and admiration; that no instruction should have been drawn from + constant and adverse experience; that the same confidence should have + repeatedly grown from the same failures; that six succeeding generations + should have rushed headlong down the precipice that was open before them; + and that men of every condition should have staked their public and + private fortunes on the desperate adventure of possessing or recovering a + tombstone two thousand miles from their country. In a period of two + centuries after the council of Clermont, each spring and summer produced a + new emigration of pilgrim warriors for the defence of the Holy Land; but + the seven great armaments or crusades were excited by some impending or + recent calamity: the nations were moved by the authority of their + pontiffs, and the example of their kings: their zeal was kindled, and + their reason was silenced, by the voice of their holy orators; and among + these, Bernard, <a href="#linkAnote-28" name="linkAnoteref-28" + id="linkAnoteref-28">28</a> the monk, or the saint, may claim the most + honorable place. <a href="#linkAnote-281" name="linkAnoteref-281" + id="linkAnoteref-281">281</a> About eight years before the first conquest + of Jerusalem, he was born of a noble family in Burgundy; at the age of + three-and-twenty he buried himself in the monastery of Citeaux, then in + the primitive fervor of the institution; at the end of two years he led + forth her third colony, or daughter, to the valley of Clairvaux <a + href="#linkAnote-29" name="linkAnoteref-29" id="linkAnoteref-29">29</a> in + Champagne; and was content, till the hour of his death, with the humble + station of abbot of his own community. A philosophic age has abolished, + with too liberal and indiscriminate disdain, the honors of these spiritual + heroes. The meanest among them are distinguished by some energies of the + mind; they were at least superior to their votaries and disciples; and, in + the race of superstition, they attained the prize for which such numbers + contended. In speech, in writing, in action, Bernard stood high above his + rivals and contemporaries; his compositions are not devoid of wit and + eloquence; and he seems to have preserved as much reason and humanity as + may be reconciled with the character of a saint. In a secular life, he + would have shared the seventh part of a private inheritance; by a vow of + poverty and penance, by closing his eyes against the visible world, <a + href="#linkAnote-30" name="linkAnoteref-30" id="linkAnoteref-30">30</a> by + the refusal of all ecclesiastical dignities, the abbot of Clairvaux became + the oracle of Europe, and the founder of one hundred and sixty convents. + Princes and pontiffs trembled at the freedom of his apostolical censures: + France, England, and Milan, consulted and obeyed his judgment in a schism + of the church: the debt was repaid by the gratitude of Innocent the + Second; and his successor, Eugenius the Third, was the friend and disciple + of the holy Bernard. It was in the proclamation of the second crusade that + he shone as the missionary and prophet of God, who called the nations to + the defence of his holy sepulchre. <a href="#linkAnote-31" + name="linkAnoteref-31" id="linkAnoteref-31">31</a> At the parliament of + Vezelay he spoke before the king; and Louis the Seventh, with his nobles, + received their crosses from his hand. The abbot of Clairvaux then marched + to the less easy conquest of the emperor Conrad: <a href="#linkAnote-311" + name="linkAnoteref-311" id="linkAnoteref-311">311</a> a phlegmatic people, + ignorant of his language, was transported by the pathetic vehemence of his + tone and gestures; and his progress, from Constance to Cologne, was the + triumph of eloquence and zeal. Bernard applauds his own success in the + depopulation of Europe; affirms that cities and castles were emptied of + their inhabitants; and computes, that only one man was left behind for the + consolation of seven widows. <a href="#linkAnote-32" name="linkAnoteref-32" + id="linkAnoteref-32">32</a> The blind fanatics were desirous of electing + him for their general; but the example of the hermit Peter was before his + eyes; and while he assured the crusaders of the divine favor, he prudently + declined a military command, in which failure and victory would have been + almost equally disgraceful to his character. <a href="#linkAnote-33" + name="linkAnoteref-33" id="linkAnoteref-33">33</a> Yet, after the + calamitous event, the abbot of Clairvaux was loudly accused as a false + prophet, the author of the public and private mourning; his enemies + exulted, his friends blushed, and his apology was slow and unsatisfactory. + He justifies his obedience to the commands of the pope; expatiates on the + mysterious ways of Providence; imputes the misfortunes of the pilgrims to + their own sins; and modestly insinuates, that his mission had been + approved by signs and wonders. <a href="#linkAnote-34" + name="linkAnoteref-34" id="linkAnoteref-34">34</a> Had the fact been + certain, the argument would be decisive; and his faithful disciples, who + enumerate twenty or thirty miracles in a day, appeal to the public + assemblies of France and Germany, in which they were performed. <a + href="#linkAnote-35" name="linkAnoteref-35" id="linkAnoteref-35">35</a> At + the present hour, such prodigies will not obtain credit beyond the + precincts of Clairvaux; but in the preternatural cures of the blind, the + lame, and the sick, who were presented to the man of God, it is impossible + for us to ascertain the separate shares of accident, of fancy, of + imposture, and of fiction. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-28" id="linkAnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ The most authentic + information of St. Bernard must be drawn from his own writings, published + in a correct edition by Père Mabillon, and reprinted at Venice, 1750, in + six volumes in folio. Whatever friendship could recollect, or superstition + could add, is contained in the two lives, by his disciples, in the vith + volume: whatever learning and criticism could ascertain, may be found in + the prefaces of the Benedictine editor.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-281" id="linkAnote-281"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 281 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-281">return</a>)<br /> [ Gibbon, whose account + of the crusades is perhaps the least accurate and satisfactory chapter in + his History, has here failed in that lucid arrangement, which in general + gives perspicuity to his most condensed and crowded narratives. He has + unaccountably, and to the great perplexity of the reader, placed the + preaching of St Bernard after the second crusade to which i led.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-29" id="linkAnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ Clairvaux, surnamed the + valley of Absynth, is situate among the woods near Bar sur Aube in + Champagne. St. Bernard would blush at the pomp of the church and + monastery; he would ask for the library, and I know not whether he would + be much edified by a tun of 800 muids, (914 1-7 hogsheads,) which almost + rivals that of Heidelberg, (Mélanges tirés d'une Grande Bibliothèque, tom. + xlvi. p. 15—20.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-30" id="linkAnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ The disciples of the + saint (Vit. ima, l. iii. c. 2, p. 1232. Vit. iida, c. 16, No. 45, p. 1383) + record a marvellous example of his pious apathy. Juxta lacum etiam + Lausannensem totius diei itinere pergens, penitus non attendit aut se + videre non vidit. Cum enim vespere facto de eodem lacû socii + colloquerentur, interrogabat eos ubi lacus ille esset, et mirati sunt + universi. To admire or despise St. Bernard as he ought, the reader, like + myself, should have before the windows of his library the beauties of that + incomparable landscape.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-31" id="linkAnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ Otho Frising. l. i. c. + 4. Bernard. Epist. 363, ad Francos Orientales Opp. tom. i. p. 328. Vit. + ima, l. iii. c. 4, tom. vi. p. 1235.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-311" id="linkAnote-311"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 311 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-311">return</a>)<br /> [ Bernard had a nobler + object in his expedition into Germany—to arrest the fierce and + merciless persecution of the Jews, which was preparing, under the monk + Radulph, to renew the frightful scenes which had preceded the first + crusade, in the flourishing cities on the banks of the Rhine. The Jews + acknowledge the Christian intervention of St. Bernard. See the curious + extract from the History of Joseph ben Meir. Wilken, vol. iii. p. 1. and + p. 63.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-32" id="linkAnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ Mandastis et obedivi.... + multiplicati sunt super numerum; vacuantur urbes et castella; et <i>pene</i> + jam non inveniunt quem apprehendant septem mulieres unum virum; adeo + ubique viduæ vivis remanent viris. Bernard. Epist. p. 247. We must be + careful not to construe <i>pene</i> as a substantive.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-33" id="linkAnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ Quis ego sum ut disponam + acies, ut egrediar ante facies armatorum, aut quid tam remotum a + professione meâ, si vires, si peritia, &c. Epist. 256, tom. i. p. 259. + He speaks with contempt of the hermit Peter, vir quidam, Epist. 363.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-34" id="linkAnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ Sic dicunt forsitan + isti, unde scimus quòd a Domino sermo egressus sit? Quæ signa tu facis ut + credamus tibi? Non est quod ad ista ipse respondeam; parcendum verecundiæ + meæ, responde tu pro me, et pro te ipso, secundum quæ vidisti et audisti, + et secundum quod te inspiraverit Deus. Consolat. l. ii. c. 1. Opp. tom. + ii. p. 421—423.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-35" id="linkAnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ See the testimonies in + Vita ima, l. iv. c. 5, 6. Opp. tom. vi. p. 1258—1261, l. vi. c. 1—17, + p. 1286—1314.] + </p> + <p> + Omnipotence itself cannot escape the murmurs of its discordant votaries; + since the same dispensation which was applauded as a deliverance in + Europe, was deplored, and perhaps arraigned, as a calamity in Asia. After + the loss of Jerusalem, the Syrian fugitives diffused their consternation + and sorrow; Bagdad mourned in the dust; the cadhi Zeineddin of Damascus + tore his beard in the caliph's presence; and the whole divan shed tears at + his melancholy tale. <a href="#linkAnote-36" name="linkAnoteref-36" + id="linkAnoteref-36">36</a> But the commanders of the faithful could only + weep; they were themselves captives in the hands of the Turks: some + temporal power was restored to the last age of the Abbassides; but their + humble ambition was confined to Bagdad and the adjacent province. Their + tyrants, the Seljukian sultans, had followed the common law of the Asiatic + dynasties, the unceasing round of valor, greatness, discord, degeneracy, + and decay; their spirit and power were unequal to the defence of religion; + and, in his distant realm of Persia, the Christians were strangers to the + name and the arms of Sangiar, the last hero of his race. <a + href="#linkAnote-37" name="linkAnoteref-37" id="linkAnoteref-37">37</a> + While the sultans were involved in the silken web of the harem, the pious + task was undertaken by their slaves, the Atabeks, <a href="#linkAnote-38" + name="linkAnoteref-38" id="linkAnoteref-38">38</a> a Turkish name, which, + like the Byzantine patricians, may be translated by Father of the Prince. + Ascansar, a valiant Turk, had been the favorite of Malek Shaw, from whom + he received the privilege of standing on the right hand of the throne; + but, in the civil wars that ensued on the monarch's death, he lost his + head and the government of Aleppo. His domestic emirs persevered in their + attachment to his son Zenghi, who proved his first arms against the Franks + in the defeat of Antioch: thirty campaigns in the service of the caliph + and sultan established his military fame; and he was invested with the + command of Mosul, as the only champion that could avenge the cause of the + prophet. The public hope was not disappointed: after a siege of + twenty-five days, he stormed the city of Edessa, and recovered from the + Franks their conquests beyond the Euphrates: <a href="#linkAnote-39" + name="linkAnoteref-39" id="linkAnoteref-39">39</a> the martial tribes of + Curdistan were subdued by the independent sovereign of Mosul and Aleppo: + his soldiers were taught to behold the camp as their only country; they + trusted to his liberality for their rewards; and their absent families + were protected by the vigilance of Zenghi. At the head of these veterans, + his son Noureddin gradually united the Mahometan powers; <a + href="#linkAnote-391" name="linkAnoteref-391" id="linkAnoteref-391">391</a> + added the kingdom of Damascus to that of Aleppo, and waged a long and + successful war against the Christians of Syria; he spread his ample reign + from the Tigris to the Nile, and the Abbassides rewarded their faithful + servant with all the titles and prerogatives of royalty. The Latins + themselves were compelled to own the wisdom and courage, and even the + justice and piety, of this implacable adversary. <a href="#linkAnote-40" + name="linkAnoteref-40" id="linkAnoteref-40">40</a> In his life and + government the holy warrior revived the zeal and simplicity of the first + caliphs. Gold and silk were banished from his palace; the use of wine from + his dominions; the public revenue was scrupulously applied to the public + service; and the frugal household of Noureddin was maintained from his + legitimate share of the spoil which he vested in the purchase of a private + estate. His favorite sultana sighed for some female object of expense. + "Alas," replied the king, "I fear God, and am no more than the treasurer + of the Moslems. Their property I cannot alienate; but I still possess + three shops in the city of Hems: these you may take; and these alone can I + bestow." His chamber of justice was the terror of the great and the refuge + of the poor. Some years after the sultan's death, an oppressed subject + called aloud in the streets of Damascus, "O Noureddin, Noureddin, where + art thou now? Arise, arise, to pity and protect us!" A tumult was + apprehended, and a living tyrant blushed or trembled at the name of a + departed monarch. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-36" id="linkAnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ Abulmahasen apud de + Guignes, Hist. des Huns, tom. ii. p. ii. p. 99.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-37" id="linkAnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ See his <i>article</i> + in the Bibliothèque Orientale of D'Herbelot, and De Guignes, tom. ii. p. + i. p. 230—261. Such was his valor, that he was styled the second + Alexander; and such the extravagant love of his subjects, that they prayed + for the sultan a year after his decease. Yet Sangiar might have been made + prisoner by the Franks, as well as by the Uzes. He reigned near fifty + years, (A.D. 1103—1152,) and was a munificent patron of Persian + poetry.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-38" id="linkAnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Chronology of + the Atabeks of Irak and Syria, in De Guignes, tom. i. p. 254; and the + reigns of Zenghi and Noureddin in the same writer, (tom. ii. p. ii. p. 147—221,) + who uses the Arabic text of Benelathir, Ben Schouna and Abulfeda; the + Bibliothèque Orientale, under the articles <i>Atabeks</i> and <i>Noureddin</i>, + and the Dynasties of Abulpharagius, p. 250—267, vers. Pocock.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-39" id="linkAnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ William of Tyre (l. xvi. + c. 4, 5, 7) describes the loss of Edessa, and the death of Zenghi. The + corruption of his name into <i>Sanguin</i>, afforded the Latins a + comfortable allusion to his <i>sanguinary</i> character and end, fit + sanguine sanguinolentus.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-391" id="linkAnote-391"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 391 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-391">return</a>)<br /> [ On Noureddin's + conquest of Damascus, see extracts from Arabian writers prefixed to the + second part of the third volume of Wilken.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-40" id="linkAnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ Noradinus (says William + of Tyre, l. xx. 33) maximus nominis et fidei Christianæ persecutor; + princeps tamen justus, vafer, providus' et secundum gentis suæ traditiones + religiosus. To this Catholic witness we may add the primate of the + Jacobites, (Abulpharag. p. 267,) quo non alter erat inter reges vitæ + ratione magis laudabili, aut quæ pluribus justitiæ experimentis abundaret. + The true praise of kings is after their death, and from the mouth of their + enemies.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkA2HCH0002" id="linkA2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LIX: The Crusades.—Part II. + </h2> + <p> + By the arms of the Turks and Franks, the Fatimites had been deprived of + Syria. In Egypt the decay of their character and influence was still more + essential. Yet they were still revered as the descendants and successors + of the prophet; they maintained their invisible state in the palace of + Cairo; and their person was seldom violated by the profane eyes of + subjects or strangers. The Latin ambassadors <a href="#linkAnote-41" + name="linkAnoteref-41" id="linkAnoteref-41">41</a> have described their + own introduction, through a series of gloomy passages, and glittering + porticos: the scene was enlivened by the warbling of birds and the murmur + of fountains: it was enriched by a display of rich furniture and rare + animals; of the Imperial treasures, something was shown, and much was + supposed; and the long order of unfolding doors was guarded by black + soldiers and domestic eunuchs. The sanctuary of the presence chamber was + veiled with a curtain; and the vizier, who conducted the ambassadors, laid + aside the cimeter, and prostrated himself three times on the ground; the + veil was then removed; and they beheld the commander of the faithful, who + signified his pleasure to the first slave of the throne. But this slave + was his master: the viziers or sultans had usurped the supreme + administration of Egypt; the claims of the rival candidates were decided + by arms; and the name of the most worthy, of the strongest, was inserted + in the royal patent of command. The factions of Dargham and Shawer + alternately expelled each other from the capital and country; and the + weaker side implored the dangerous protection of the sultan of Damascus, + or the king of Jerusalem, the perpetual enemies of the sect and monarchy + of the Fatimites. By his arms and religion the Turk was most formidable; + but the Frank, in an easy, direct march, could advance from Gaza to the + Nile; while the intermediate situation of his realm compelled the troops + of Noureddin to wheel round the skirts of Arabia, a long and painful + circuit, which exposed them to thirst, fatigue, and the burning winds of + the desert. The secret zeal and ambition of the Turkish prince aspired to + reign in Egypt under the name of the Abbassides; but the restoration of + the suppliant Shawer was the ostensible motive of the first expedition; + and the success was intrusted to the emir Shiracouh, a valiant and veteran + commander. Dargham was oppressed and slain; but the ingratitude, the + jealousy, the just apprehensions, of his more fortunate rival, soon + provoked him to invite the king of Jerusalem to deliver Egypt from his + insolent benefactors. To this union the forces of Shiracouh were unequal: + he relinquished the premature conquest; and the evacuation of Belbeis or + Pelusium was the condition of his safe retreat. As the Turks defiled + before the enemy, and their general closed the rear, with a vigilant eye, + and a battle axe in his hand, a Frank presumed to ask him if he were not + afraid of an attack. "It is doubtless in your power to begin the attack," + replied the intrepid emir; "but rest assured, that not one of my soldiers + will go to paradise till he has sent an infidel to hell." His report of + the riches of the land, the effeminacy of the natives, and the disorders + of the government, revived the hopes of Noureddin; the caliph of Bagdad + applauded the pious design; and Shiracouh descended into Egypt a second + time with twelve thousand Turks and eleven thousand Arabs. Yet his forces + were still inferior to the confederate armies of the Franks and Saracens; + and I can discern an unusual degree of military art, in his passage of the + Nile, his retreat into Thebais, his masterly evolutions in the battle of + Babain, the surprise of Alexandria, and his marches and countermarches in + the flats and valley of Egypt, from the tropic to the sea. His conduct was + seconded by the courage of his troops, and on the eve of action a Mamaluke + <a href="#linkAnote-42" name="linkAnoteref-42" id="linkAnoteref-42">42</a> + exclaimed, "If we cannot wrest Egypt from the Christian dogs, why do we + not renounce the honors and rewards of the sultan, and retire to labor + with the peasants, or to spin with the females of the harem?" Yet, after + all his efforts in the field, <a href="#linkAnote-43" + name="linkAnoteref-43" id="linkAnoteref-43">43</a> after the obstinate + defence of Alexandria <a href="#linkAnote-44" name="linkAnoteref-44" + id="linkAnoteref-44">44</a> by his nephew Saladin, an honorable + capitulation and retreat <a href="#linkAnote-441" name="linkAnoteref-441" + id="linkAnoteref-441">441</a> concluded the second enterprise of + Shiracouh; and Noureddin reserved his abilities for a third and more + propitious occasion. It was soon offered by the ambition and avarice of + Amalric or Amaury, king of Jerusalem, who had imbibed the pernicious + maxim, that no faith should be kept with the enemies of God. <a + href="#linkAnote-442" name="linkAnoteref-442" id="linkAnoteref-442">442</a> + A religious warrior, the great master of the hospital, encouraged him to + proceed; the emperor of Constantinople either gave, or promised, a fleet + to act with the armies of Syria; and the perfidious Christian, unsatisfied + with spoil and subsidy, aspired to the conquest of Egypt. In this + emergency, the Moslems turned their eyes towards the sultan of Damascus; + the vizier, whom danger encompassed on all sides, yielded to their + unanimous wishes, and Noureddin seemed to be tempted by the fair offer of + one third of the revenue of the kingdom. The Franks were already at the + gates of Cairo; but the suburbs, the old city, were burnt on their + approach; they were deceived by an insidious negotiation, and their + vessels were unable to surmount the barriers of the Nile. They prudently + declined a contest with the Turks in the midst of a hostile country; and + Amaury retired into Palestine with the shame and reproach that always + adhere to unsuccessful injustice. After this deliverance, Shiracouh was + invested with a robe of honor, which he soon stained with the blood of the + unfortunate Shawer. For a while, the Turkish emirs condescended to hold + the office of vizier; but this foreign conquest precipitated the fall of + the Fatimites themselves; and the bloodless change was accomplished by a + message and a word. The caliphs had been degraded by their own weakness + and the tyranny of the viziers: their subjects blushed, when the + descendant and successor of the prophet presented his naked hand to the + rude gripe of a Latin ambassador; they wept when he sent the hair of his + women, a sad emblem of their grief and terror, to excite the pity of the + sultan of Damascus. By the command of Noureddin, and the sentence of the + doctors, the holy names of Abubeker, Omar, and Othman, were solemnly + restored: the caliph Mosthadi, of Bagdad, was acknowledged in the public + prayers as the true commander of the faithful; and the green livery of the + sons of Ali was exchanged for the black color of the Abbassides. The last + of his race, the caliph Adhed, who survived only ten days, expired in + happy ignorance of his fate; his treasures secured the loyalty of the + soldiers, and silenced the murmurs of the sectaries; and in all subsequent + revolutions, Egypt has never departed from the orthodox tradition of the + Moslems. <a href="#linkAnote-45" name="linkAnoteref-45" + id="linkAnoteref-45">45</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-41" id="linkAnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ From the ambassador, + William of Tyre (l. xix. c. 17, 18,) describes the palace of Cairo. In the + caliph's treasure were found a pearl as large as a pigeon's egg, a ruby + weighing seventeen Egyptian drams, an emerald a palm and a half in length, + and many vases of crystal and porcelain of China, (Renaudot, p. 536.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-42" id="linkAnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ <i>Mamluc</i>, plur. <i>Mamalic</i>, + is defined by Pocock, (Prolegom. ad Abulpharag. p. 7,) and D'Herbelot, (p. + 545,) servum emptitium, seu qui pretio numerato in domini possessionem + cedit. They frequently occur in the wars of Saladin, (Bohadin, p. 236, + &c.;) and it was only the <i>Bahartie</i> Mamalukes that were first + introduced into Egypt by his descendants.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-43" id="linkAnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ Jacobus à Vitriaco (p. + 1116) gives the king of Jerusalem no more than 374 knights. Both the + Franks and the Moslems report the superior numbers of the enemy; a + difference which may be solved by counting or omitting the unwarlike + Egyptians.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-44" id="linkAnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ It was the Alexandria of + the Arabs, a middle term in extent and riches between the period of the + Greeks and Romans, and that of the Turks, (Savary, Lettres sur l'Egypte, + tom. i. p. 25, 26.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-441" id="linkAnote-441"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 441 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-441">return</a>)<br /> [ The treaty stipulated + that both the Christians and the Arabs should withdraw from Egypt. Wilken, + vol. iii. part ii. p. 113.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-442" id="linkAnote-442"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 442 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-442">return</a>)<br /> [ The Knights Templars, + abhorring the perfidious breach of treaty partly, perhaps, out of jealousy + of the Hospitallers, refused to join in this enterprise. Will. Tyre c. xx. + p. 5. Wilken, vol. iii. part ii. p. 117.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-45" id="linkAnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ For this great + revolution of Egypt, see William of Tyre, (l. xix. 5, 6, 7, 12—31, + xx. 5—12,) Bohadin, (in Vit. Saladin, p. 30—39,) Abulfeda, (in + Excerpt. Schultens, p. 1—12,) D'Herbelot, (Bibliot. Orient. <i>Adhed</i>, + <i>Fathemah</i>, but very incorrect,) Renaudot, (Hist. Patriarch. Alex. p. + 522—525, 532—537,) Vertot, (Hist. des Chevaliers de Malthe, + tom. i. p. 141—163, in 4to.,) and M. de Guignes, (tom. ii. p. 185—215.)] + </p> + <p> + The hilly country beyond the Tigris is occupied by the pastoral tribes of + the Curds; <a href="#linkAnote-46" name="linkAnoteref-46" + id="linkAnoteref-46">46</a> a people hardy, strong, savage impatient of + the yoke, addicted to rapine, and tenacious of the government of their + national chiefs. The resemblance of name, situation, and manners, seems to + identify them with the Carduchians of the Greeks; <a href="#linkAnote-47" + name="linkAnoteref-47" id="linkAnoteref-47">47</a> and they still defend + against the Ottoman Porte the antique freedom which they asserted against + the successors of Cyrus. Poverty and ambition prompted them to embrace the + profession of mercenary soldiers: the service of his father and uncle + prepared the reign of the great Saladin; <a href="#linkAnote-48" + name="linkAnoteref-48" id="linkAnoteref-48">48</a> and the son of Job or + Ayud, a simple Curd, magnanimously smiled at his pedigree, which flattery + deduced from the Arabian caliphs. <a href="#linkAnote-49" + name="linkAnoteref-49" id="linkAnoteref-49">49</a> So unconscious was + Noureddin of the impending ruin of his house, that he constrained the + reluctant youth to follow his uncle Shiracouh into Egypt: his military + character was established by the defence of Alexandria; and, if we may + believe the Latins, he solicited and obtained from the Christian general + the <i>profane</i>honors of knighthood. <a href="#linkAnote-50" + name="linkAnoteref-50" id="linkAnoteref-50">50</a> On the death of + Shiracouh, the office of grand vizier was bestowed on Saladin, as the + youngest and least powerful of the emirs; but with the advice of his + father, whom he invited to Cairo, his genius obtained the ascendant over + his equals, and attached the army to his person and interest. While + Noureddin lived, these ambitious Curds were the most humble of his slaves; + and the indiscreet murmurs of the divan were silenced by the prudent Ayub, + who loudly protested that at the command of the sultan he himself would + lead his sons in chains to the foot of the throne. "Such language," he + added in private, "was prudent and proper in an assembly of your rivals; + but we are now above fear and obedience; and the threats of Noureddin + shall not extort the tribute of a sugar-cane." His seasonable death + relieved them from the odious and doubtful conflict: his son, a minor of + eleven years of age, was left for a while to the emirs of Damascus; and + the new lord of Egypt was decorated by the caliph with every title <a + href="#linkAnote-51" name="linkAnoteref-51" id="linkAnoteref-51">51</a> + that could sanctify his usurpation in the eyes of the people. Nor was + Saladin long content with the possession of Egypt; he despoiled the + Christians of Jerusalem, and the Atabeks of Damascus, Aleppo, and + Diarbekir: Mecca and Medina acknowledged him for their temporal protector: + his brother subdued the distant regions of Yemen, or the happy Arabia; and + at the hour of his death, his empire was spread from the African Tripoli + to the Tigris, and from the Indian Ocean to the mountains of Armenia. In + the judgment of his character, the reproaches of treason and ingratitude + strike forcibly on <i>our</i> minds, impressed, as they are, with the + principle and experience of law and loyalty. But his ambition may in some + measure be excused by the revolutions of Asia, <a href="#linkAnote-52" + name="linkAnoteref-52" id="linkAnoteref-52">52</a> which had erased every + notion of legitimate succession; by the recent example of the Atabeks + themselves; by his reverence to the son of his benefactor; his humane and + generous behavior to the collateral branches; by <i>their</i> incapacity + and <i>his</i> merit; by the approbation of the caliph, the sole source of + all legitimate power; and, above all, by the wishes and interest of the + people, whose happiness is the first object of government. In <i>his</i> + virtues, and in those of his patron, they admired the singular union of + the hero and the saint; for both Noureddin and Saladin are ranked among + the Mahometan saints; and the constant meditation of the holy war appears + to have shed a serious and sober color over their lives and actions. The + youth of the latter <a href="#linkAnote-53" name="linkAnoteref-53" + id="linkAnoteref-53">53</a> was addicted to wine and women: but his + aspiring spirit soon renounced the temptations of pleasure for the graver + follies of fame and dominion: the garment of Saladin was of coarse + woollen; water was his only drink; and, while he emulated the temperance, + he surpassed the chastity, of his Arabian prophet. Both in faith and + practice he was a rigid Mussulman: he ever deplored that the defence of + religion had not allowed him to accomplish the pilgrimage of Mecca; but at + the stated hours, five times each day, the sultan devoutly prayed with his + brethren: the involuntary omission of fasting was scrupulously repaid; and + his perusal of the Koran, on horseback between the approaching armies, may + be quoted as a proof, however ostentatious, of piety and courage. <a + href="#linkAnote-54" name="linkAnoteref-54" id="linkAnoteref-54">54</a> + The superstitious doctrine of the sect of Shafei was the only study that + he deigned to encourage: the poets were safe in his contempt; but all + profane science was the object of his aversion; and a philosopher, who had + invented some speculative novelties, was seized and strangled by the + command of the royal saint. The justice of his divan was accessible to the + meanest suppliant against himself and his ministers; and it was only for a + kingdom that Saladin would deviate from the rule of equity. While the + descendants of Seljuk and Zenghi held his stirrup and smoothed his + garments, he was affable and patient with the meanest of his servants. So + boundless was his liberality, that he distributed twelve thousand horses + at the siege of Acre; and, at the time of his death, no more than + forty-seven drams of silver and one piece of gold coin were found in the + treasury; yet, in a martial reign, the tributes were diminished, and the + wealthy citizens enjoyed, without fear or danger, the fruits of their + industry. Egypt, Syria, and Arabia, were adorned by the royal foundations + of hospitals, colleges, and mosques; and Cairo was fortified with a wall + and citadel; but his works were consecrated to public use: <a + href="#linkAnote-55" name="linkAnoteref-55" id="linkAnoteref-55">55</a> + nor did the sultan indulge himself in a garden or palace of private + luxury. In a fanatic age, himself a fanatic, the genuine virtues of + Saladin commanded the esteem of the Christians; the emperor of Germany + gloried in his friendship; <a href="#linkAnote-56" name="linkAnoteref-56" + id="linkAnoteref-56">56</a> the Greek emperor solicited his alliance; <a + href="#linkAnote-57" name="linkAnoteref-57" id="linkAnoteref-57">57</a> + and the conquest of Jerusalem diffused, and perhaps magnified, his fame + both in the East and West. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-46" id="linkAnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ For the Curds, see De + Guignes, tom. ii. p. 416, 417, the Index Geographicus of Schultens and + Tavernier, Voyages, p. i. p. 308, 309. The Ayoubites descended from the + tribe of the Rawadiæi, one of the noblest; but as <i>they</i> were + infected with the heresy of the Metempsychosis, the orthodox sultans + insinuated that their descent was only on the mother's side, and that + their ancestor was a stranger who settled among the Curds.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-47" id="linkAnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ See the ivth book of the + Anabasis of Xenophon. The ten thousand suffered more from the arrows of + the free Carduchians, than from the splendid weakness of the great king.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-48" id="linkAnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ We are indebted to the + professor Schultens (Lugd. Bat, 1755, in folio) for the richest and most + authentic materials, a life of Saladin by his friend and minister the + Cadhi Bohadin, and copious extracts from the history of his kinsman the + prince Abulfeda of Hamah. To these we may add, the article of <i>Salaheddin</i> + in the Bibliothèque Orientale, and all that may be gleaned from the + Dynasties of Abulpharagius.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-49" id="linkAnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ Since Abulfeda was + himself an Ayoubite, he may share the praise, for imitating, at least + tacitly, the modesty of the founder.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-50" id="linkAnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ Hist. Hierosol. in the + Gesta Dei per Francos, p. 1152. A similar example may be found in + Joinville, (p. 42, edition du Louvre;) but the pious St. Louis refused to + dignify infidels with the order of Christian knighthood, (Ducange, + Observations, p 70.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-51" id="linkAnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ In these Arabic titles, + <i>religionis</i> must always be understood; <i>Noureddin</i>, lumen r.; + <i>Ezzodin</i>, decus; <i>Amadoddin</i>, columen: our hero's proper name + was Joseph, and he was styled <i>Salahoddin</i>, salus; <i>Al Malichus</i>, + <i>Al Nasirus</i>, rex defensor; <i>Abu Modaffer</i>, pater victoriæ, + Schultens, Præfat.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-52" id="linkAnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ Abulfeda, who descended + from a brother of Saladin, observes, from many examples, that the founders + of dynasties took the guilt for themselves, and left the reward to their + innocent collaterals, (Excerpt p. 10.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-53" id="linkAnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ See his life and + character in Renaudot, p. 537—548.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-54" id="linkAnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ His civil and religious + virtues are celebrated in the first chapter of Bohadin, (p. 4—30,) + himself an eye-witness, and an honest bigot.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-55" id="linkAnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ In many works, + particularly Joseph's well in the castle of Cairo, the Sultan and the + Patriarch have been confounded by the ignorance of natives and + travellers.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-56" id="linkAnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ Anonym. Canisii, tom. + iii. p. ii. p. 504.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-57" id="linkAnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ Bohadin, p. 129, 130.] + </p> + <p> + During its short existence, the kingdom of Jerusalem <a + href="#linkAnote-58" name="linkAnoteref-58" id="linkAnoteref-58">58</a> + was supported by the discord of the Turks and Saracens; and both the + Fatimite caliphs and the sultans of Damascus were tempted to sacrifice the + cause of their religion to the meaner considerations of private and + present advantage. But the powers of Egypt, Syria, and Arabia, were now + united by a hero, whom nature and fortune had armed against the + Christians. All without now bore the most threatening aspect; and all was + feeble and hollow in the internal state of Jerusalem. After the two first + Baldwins, the brother and cousin of Godfrey of Bouillon, the sceptre + devolved by female succession to Melisenda, daughter of the second + Baldwin, and her husband Fulk, count of Anjou, the father, by a former + marriage, of our English Plantagenets. Their two sons, Baldwin the Third, + and Amaury, waged a strenuous, and not unsuccessful, war against the + infidels; but the son of Amaury, Baldwin the Fourth, was deprived, by the + leprosy, a gift of the crusades, of the faculties both of mind and body. + His sister Sybilla, the mother of Baldwin the Fifth, was his natural + heiress: after the suspicious death of her child, she crowned her second + husband, Guy of Lusignan, a prince of a handsome person, but of such base + renown, that his own brother Jeffrey was heard to exclaim, "Since they + have made <i>him</i> a king, surely they would have made <i>me</i> a god!" + The choice was generally blamed; and the most powerful vassal, Raymond + count of Tripoli, who had been excluded from the succession and regency, + entertained an implacable hatred against the king, and exposed his honor + and conscience to the temptations of the sultan. Such were the guardians + of the holy city; a leper, a child, a woman, a coward, and a traitor: yet + its fate was delayed twelve years by some supplies from Europe, by the + valor of the military orders, and by the distant or domestic avocations of + their great enemy. At length, on every side, the sinking state was + encircled and pressed by a hostile line: and the truce was violated by the + Franks, whose existence it protected. A soldier of fortune, Reginald of + Chatillon, had seized a fortress on the edge of the desert, from whence he + pillaged the caravans, insulted Mahomet, and threatened the cities of + Mecca and Medina. Saladin condescended to complain; rejoiced in the denial + of justice, and at the head of fourscore thousand horse and foot invaded + the Holy Land. The choice of Tiberias for his first siege was suggested by + the count of Tripoli, to whom it belonged; and the king of Jerusalem was + persuaded to drain his garrison, and to arm his people, for the relief of + that important place. <a href="#linkAnote-59" name="linkAnoteref-59" + id="linkAnoteref-59">59</a> By the advice of the perfidious Raymond, the + Christians were betrayed into a camp destitute of water: he fled on the + first onset, with the curses of both nations: <a href="#linkAnote-60" + name="linkAnoteref-60" id="linkAnoteref-60">60</a> Lusignan was + overthrown, with the loss of thirty thousand men; and the wood of the true + cross (a dire misfortune!) was left in the power of the infidels. <a + href="#linkAnote-601" name="linkAnoteref-601" id="linkAnoteref-601">601</a> + The royal captive was conducted to the tent of Saladin; and as he fainted + with thirst and terror, the generous victor presented him with a cup of + sherbet, cooled in snow, without suffering his companion, Reginald of + Chatillon, to partake of this pledge of hospitality and pardon. "The + person and dignity of a king," said the sultan, "are sacred, but this + impious robber must instantly acknowledge the prophet, whom he has + blasphemed, or meet the death which he has so often deserved." On the + proud or conscientious refusal of the Christian warrior, Saladin struck + him on the head with his cimeter, and Reginald was despatched by the + guards. <a href="#linkAnote-61" name="linkAnoteref-61" id="linkAnoteref-61">61</a> + The trembling Lusignan was sent to Damascus, to an honorable prison and + speedy ransom; but the victory was stained by the execution of two hundred + and thirty knights of the hospital, the intrepid champions and martyrs of + their faith. The kingdom was left without a head; and of the two grand + masters of the military orders, the one was slain and the other was a + prisoner. From all the cities, both of the sea-coast and the inland + country, the garrisons had been drawn away for this fatal field: Tyre and + Tripoli alone could escape the rapid inroad of Saladin; and three months + after the battle of Tiberias, he appeared in arms before the gates of + Jerusalem. <a href="#linkAnote-62" name="linkAnoteref-62" + id="linkAnoteref-62">62</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-58" id="linkAnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ For the Latin kingdom of + Jerusalem, see William of Tyre, from the ixth to the xxiid book. Jacob a + Vitriaco, Hist. Hierosolem l i., and Sanutus Secreta Fidelium Crucis, l. + iii. p. vi. vii. viii. ix.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-59" id="linkAnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ Templarii ut apes + bombabant et Hospitalarii ut venti stridebant, et barones se exitio + offerebant, et Turcopuli (the Christian light troops) semet ipsi in ignem + injiciebant, (Ispahani de Expugnatione Kudsiticâ, p. 18, apud Schultens;) + a specimen of Arabian eloquence, somewhat different from the style of + Xenophon!] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-60" id="linkAnote-60"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 60 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-60">return</a>)<br /> [ The Latins affirm, the + Arabians insinuate, the treason of Raymond; but had he really embraced + their religion, he would have been a saint and a hero in the eyes of the + latter.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-601" id="linkAnote-601"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 601 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-601">return</a>)<br /> [ Raymond's advice would + have prevented the abandonment of a secure camp abounding with water near + Sepphoris. The rash and insolent valor of the master of the order of + Knights Templars, which had before exposed the Christians to a fatal + defeat at the brook Kishon, forced the feeble king to annul the + determination of a council of war, and advance to a camp in an enclosed + valley among the mountains, near Hittin, without water. Raymond did not + fly till the battle was irretrievably lost, and then the Saracens seem to + have opened their ranks to allow him free passage. The charge of + suggesting the siege of Tiberias appears ungrounded Raymond, no doubt, + played a double part: he was a man of strong sagacity, who foresaw the + desperate nature of the contest with Saladin, endeavored by every means to + maintain the treaty, and, though he joined both his arms and his still + more valuable counsels to the Christian army, yet kept up a kind of + amicable correspondence with the Mahometans. See Wilken, vol. iii. part + ii. p. 276, et seq. Michaud, vol. ii. p. 278, et seq. M. Michaud is still + more friendly than Wilken to the memory of Count Raymond, who died + suddenly, shortly after the battle of Hittin. He quotes a letter written + in the name of Saladin by the caliph Alfdel, to show that Raymond was + considered by the Mahometans their most dangerous and detested enemy. "No + person of distinction among the Christians escaped, except the count, (of + Tripoli) whom God curse. God made him die shortly afterwards, and sent him + from the kingdom of death to hell."—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-61" id="linkAnote-61"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 61 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-61">return</a>)<br /> [ Benaud, Reginald, or + Arnold de Chatillon, is celebrated by the Latins in his life and death; + but the circumstances of the latter are more distinctly related by Bohadin + and Abulfeda; and Joinville (Hist. de St. Louis, p. 70) alludes to the + practice of Saladin, of never putting to death a prisoner who had tasted + his bread and salt. Some of the companions of Arnold had been slaughtered, + and almost sacrificed, in a valley of Mecca, ubi sacrificia mactantur, + (Abulfeda, p. 32.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-62" id="linkAnote-62"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 62 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-62">return</a>)<br /> [ Vertot, who well + describes the loss of the kingdom and city (Hist. des Chevaliers de + Malthe, tom. i. l. ii. p. 226—278,) inserts two original epistles of + a Knight Templar.] + </p> + <p> + He might expect that the siege of a city so venerable on earth and in + heaven, so interesting to Europe and Asia, would rekindle the last sparks + of enthusiasm; and that, of sixty thousand Christians, every man would be + a soldier, and every soldier a candidate for martyrdom. But Queen Sybilla + trembled for herself and her captive husband; and the barons and knights, + who had escaped from the sword and chains of the Turks, displayed the same + factious and selfish spirit in the public ruin. The most numerous portion + of the inhabitants was composed of the Greek and Oriental Christians, whom + experience had taught to prefer the Mahometan before the Latin yoke; <a + href="#linkAnote-63" name="linkAnoteref-63" id="linkAnoteref-63">63</a> + and the holy sepulchre attracted a base and needy crowd, without arms or + courage, who subsisted only on the charity of the pilgrims. Some feeble + and hasty efforts were made for the defence of Jerusalem: but in the space + of fourteen days, a victorious army drove back the sallies of the + besieged, planted their engines, opened the wall to the breadth of fifteen + cubits, applied their scaling-ladders, and erected on the breach twelve + banners of the prophet and the sultan. It was in vain that a barefoot + procession of the queen, the women, and the monks, implored the Son of God + to save his tomb and his inheritance from impious violation. Their sole + hope was in the mercy of the conqueror, and to their first suppliant + deputation that mercy was sternly denied. "He had sworn to avenge the + patience and long-suffering of the Moslems; the hour of forgiveness was + elapsed, and the moment was now arrived to expiate, in blood, the innocent + blood which had been spilt by Godfrey and the first crusaders." But a + desperate and successful struggle of the Franks admonished the sultan that + his triumph was not yet secure; he listened with reverence to a solemn + adjuration in the name of the common Father of mankind; and a sentiment of + human sympathy mollified the rigor of fanaticism and conquest. He + consented to accept the city, and to spare the inhabitants. The Greek and + Oriental Christians were permitted to live under his dominion, but it was + stipulated, that in forty days all the Franks and Latins should evacuate + Jerusalem, and be safely conducted to the seaports of Syria and Egypt; + that ten pieces of gold should be paid for each man, five for each woman, + and one for every child; and that those who were unable to purchase their + freedom should be detained in perpetual slavery. Of some writers it is a + favorite and invidious theme to compare the humanity of Saladin with the + massacre of the first crusade. The difference would be merely personal; + but we should not forget that the Christians had offered to capitulate, + and that the Mahometans of Jerusalem sustained the last extremities of an + assault and storm. Justice is indeed due to the fidelity with which the + Turkish conqueror fulfilled the conditions of the treaty; and he may be + deservedly praised for the glance of pity which he cast on the misery of + the vanquished. Instead of a rigorous exaction of his debt, he accepted a + sum of thirty thousand byzants, for the ransom of seven thousand poor; two + or three thousand more were dismissed by his gratuitous clemency; and the + number of slaves was reduced to eleven or fourteen thousand persons. In + this interview with the queen, his words, and even his tears suggested the + kindest consolations; his liberal alms were distributed among those who + had been made orphans or widows by the fortune of war; and while the + knights of the hospital were in arms against him, he allowed their more + pious brethren to continue, during the term of a year, the care and + service of the sick. In these acts of mercy the virtue of Saladin deserves + our admiration and love: he was above the necessity of dissimulation, and + his stern fanaticism would have prompted him to dissemble, rather than to + affect, this profane compassion for the enemies of the Koran. After + Jerusalem had been delivered from the presence of the strangers, the + sultan made his triumphal entry, his banners waving in the wind, and to + the harmony of martial music. The great mosque of Omar, which had been + converted into a church, was again consecrated to one God and his prophet + Mahomet: the walls and pavement were purified with rose-water; and a + pulpit, the labor of Noureddin, was erected in the sanctuary. But when the + golden cross that glittered on the dome was cast down, and dragged through + the streets, the Christians of every sect uttered a lamentable groan, + which was answered by the joyful shouts of the Moslems. In four ivory + chests the patriarch had collected the crosses, the images, the vases, and + the relics of the holy place; they were seized by the conqueror, who was + desirous of presenting the caliph with the trophies of Christian idolatry. + He was persuaded, however, to intrust them to the patriarch and prince of + Antioch; and the pious pledge was redeemed by Richard of England, at the + expense of fifty-two thousand byzants of gold. <a href="#linkAnote-64" + name="linkAnoteref-64" id="linkAnoteref-64">64</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-63" id="linkAnote-63"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 63 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-63">return</a>)<br /> [ Renaudot, Hist. + Patriarch. Alex. p. 545.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-64" id="linkAnote-64"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 64 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-64">return</a>)<br /> [ For the conquest of + Jerusalem, Bohadin (p. 67—75) and Abulfeda (p. 40—43) are our + Moslem witnesses. Of the Christian, Bernard Thesaurarius (c. 151—167) + is the most copious and authentic; see likewise Matthew Paris, (p. 120—124.)] + </p> + <p> + The nations might fear and hope the immediate and final expulsion of the + Latins from Syria; which was yet delayed above a century after the death + of Saladin. <a href="#linkAnote-65" name="linkAnoteref-65" + id="linkAnoteref-65">65</a> In the career of victory, he was first checked + by the resistance of Tyre; the troops and garrisons, which had + capitulated, were imprudently conducted to the same port: their numbers + were adequate to the defence of the place; and the arrival of Conrad of + Montferrat inspired the disorderly crowd with confidence and union. His + father, a venerable pilgrim, had been made prisoner in the battle of + Tiberias; but that disaster was unknown in Italy and Greece, when the son + was urged by ambition and piety to visit the inheritance of his royal + nephew, the infant Baldwin. The view of the Turkish banners warned him + from the hostile coast of Jaffa; and Conrad was unanimously hailed as the + prince and champion of Tyre, which was already besieged by the conqueror + of Jerusalem. The firmness of his zeal, and perhaps his knowledge of a + generous foe, enabled him to brave the threats of the sultan, and to + declare, that should his aged parent be exposed before the walls, he + himself would discharge the first arrow, and glory in his descent from a + Christian martyr. <a href="#linkAnote-66" name="linkAnoteref-66" + id="linkAnoteref-66">66</a> The Egyptian fleet was allowed to enter the + harbor of Tyre; but the chain was suddenly drawn, and five galleys were + either sunk or taken: a thousand Turks were slain in a sally; and Saladin, + after burning his engines, concluded a glorious campaign by a disgraceful + retreat to Damascus. He was soon assailed by a more formidable tempest. + The pathetic narratives, and even the pictures, that represented in lively + colors the servitude and profanation of Jerusalem, awakened the torpid + sensibility of Europe: the emperor Frederic Barbarossa, and the kings of + France and England, assumed the cross; and the tardy magnitude of their + armaments was anticipated by the maritime states of the Mediterranean and + the Ocean. The skilful and provident Italians first embarked in the ships + of Genoa, Pisa, and Venice. They were speedily followed by the most eager + pilgrims of France, Normandy, and the Western Isles. The powerful succor + of Flanders, Frise, and Denmark, filled near a hundred vessels: and the + Northern warriors were distinguished in the field by a lofty stature and a + ponderous battle-axe. <a href="#linkAnote-67" name="linkAnoteref-67" + id="linkAnoteref-67">67</a> Their increasing multitudes could no longer be + confined within the walls of Tyre, or remain obedient to the voice of + Conrad. They pitied the misfortunes, and revered the dignity, of Lusignan, + who was released from prison, perhaps, to divide the army of the Franks. + He proposed the recovery of Ptolemais, or Acre, thirty miles to the south + of Tyre; and the place was first invested by two thousand horse and thirty + thousand foot under his nominal command. I shall not expatiate on the + story of this memorable siege; which lasted near two years, and consumed, + in a narrow space, the forces of Europe and Asia. Never did the flame of + enthusiasm burn with fiercer and more destructive rage; nor could the true + believers, a common appellation, who consecrated their own martyrs, refuse + some applause to the mistaken zeal and courage of their adversaries. At + the sound of the holy trumpet, the Moslems of Egypt, Syria, Arabia, and + the Oriental provinces, assembled under the servant of the prophet: <a + href="#linkAnote-68" name="linkAnoteref-68" id="linkAnoteref-68">68</a> + his camp was pitched and removed within a few miles of Acre; and he + labored, night and day, for the relief of his brethren and the annoyance + of the Franks. Nine battles, not unworthy of the name, were fought in the + neighborhood of Mount Carmel, with such vicissitude of fortune, that in + one attack, the sultan forced his way into the city; that in one sally, + the Christians penetrated to the royal tent. By the means of divers and + pigeons, a regular correspondence was maintained with the besieged; and, + as often as the sea was left open, the exhausted garrison was withdrawn, + and a fresh supply was poured into the place. The Latin camp was thinned + by famine, the sword and the climate; but the tents of the dead were + replenished with new pilgrims, who exaggerated the strength and speed of + their approaching countrymen. The vulgar was astonished by the report, + that the pope himself, with an innumerable crusade, was advanced as far as + Constantinople. The march of the emperor filled the East with more serious + alarms: the obstacles which he encountered in Asia, and perhaps in Greece, + were raised by the policy of Saladin: his joy on the death of Barbarossa + was measured by his esteem; and the Christians were rather dismayed than + encouraged at the sight of the duke of Swabia and his way-worn remnant of + five thousand Germans. At length, in the spring of the second year, the + royal fleets of France and England cast anchor in the Bay of Acre, and the + siege was more vigorously prosecuted by the youthful emulation of the two + kings, Philip Augustus and Richard Plantagenet. After every resource had + been tried, and every hope was exhausted, the defenders of Acre submitted + to their fate; a capitulation was granted, but their lives and liberties + were taxed at the hard conditions of a ransom of two hundred thousand + pieces of gold, the deliverance of one hundred nobles, and fifteen hundred + inferior captives, and the restoration of the wood of the holy cross. Some + doubts in the agreement, and some delay in the execution, rekindled the + fury of the Franks, and three thousand Moslems, almost in the sultan's + view, were beheaded by the command of the sanguinary Richard. <a + href="#linkAnote-69" name="linkAnoteref-69" id="linkAnoteref-69">69</a> By + the conquest of Acre, the Latin powers acquired a strong town and a + convenient harbor; but the advantage was most dearly purchased. The + minister and historian of Saladin computes, from the report of the enemy, + that their numbers, at different periods, amounted to five or six hundred + thousand; that more than one hundred thousand Christians were slain; that + a far greater number was lost by disease or shipwreck; and that a small + portion of this mighty host could return in safety to their native + countries. <a href="#linkAnote-70" name="linkAnoteref-70" + id="linkAnoteref-70">70</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-65" id="linkAnote-65"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 65 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-65">return</a>)<br /> [ The sieges of Tyre and + Acre are most copiously described by Bernard Thesaurarius, (de + Acquisitione Terræ Sanctæ, c. 167—179,) the author of the Historia + Hierosolymitana, (p. 1150—1172, in Bongarsius,) Abulfeda, (p. 43—50,) + and Bohadin, (p. 75—179.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-66" id="linkAnote-66"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 66 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-66">return</a>)<br /> [ I have followed a + moderate and probable representation of the fact; by Vertot, who adopts + without reluctance a romantic tale the old marquis is actually exposed to + the darts of the besieged.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-67" id="linkAnote-67"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 67 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-67">return</a>)<br /> [ Northmanni et Gothi, et + cæteri populi insularum quæ inter occidentem et septentrionem sitæ sunt, + gentes bellicosæ, corporis proceri mortis intrepidæ, bipennibus armatæ, + navibus rotundis, quæ Ysnachiæ dicuntur, advectæ.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-68" id="linkAnote-68"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 68 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-68">return</a>)<br /> [ The historian of + Jerusalem (p. 1108) adds the nations of the East from the Tigris to India, + and the swarthy tribes of Moors and Getulians, so that Asia and Africa + fought against Europe.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-69" id="linkAnote-69"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 69 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-69">return</a>)<br /> [ Bohadin, p. 180; and + this massacre is neither denied nor blamed by the Christian historians. + Alacriter jussa complentes, (the English soldiers,) says Galfridus à + Vinesauf, (l. iv. c. 4, p. 346,) who fixes at 2700 the number of victims; + who are multiplied to 5000 by Roger Hoveden, (p. 697, 698.) The humanity + or avarice of Philip Augustus was persuaded to ransom his prisoners, + (Jacob à Vitriaco, l. i. c. 98, p. 1122.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-70" id="linkAnote-70"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 70 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-70">return</a>)<br /> [ Bohadin, p. 14. He + quotes the judgment of Balianus, and the prince of Sidon, and adds, ex + illo mundo quasi hominum paucissimi redierunt. Among the Christians who + died before St. John d'Acre, I find the English names of De Ferrers earl + of Derby, (Dugdale, Baronage, part i. p. 260,) Mowbray, (idem, p. 124,) De + Mandevil, De Fiennes, St. John, Scrope, Bigot, Talbot, &c.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkA2HCH0003" id="linkA2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LIX: The Crusades.—Part III. + </h2> + <p> + Philip Augustus, and Richard the First, are the only kings of France and + England who have fought under the same banners; but the holy service in + which they were enlisted was incessantly disturbed by their national + jealousy; and the two factions, which they protected in Palestine, were + more averse to each other than to the common enemy. In the eyes of the + Orientals; the French monarch was superior in dignity and power; and, in + the emperor's absence, the Latins revered him as their temporal chief. <a + href="#linkAnote-71" name="linkAnoteref-71" id="linkAnoteref-71">71</a> + His exploits were not adequate to his fame. Philip was brave, but the + statesman predominated in his character; he was soon weary of sacrificing + his health and interest on a barren coast: the surrender of Acre became + the signal of his departure; nor could he justify this unpopular + desertion, by leaving the duke of Burgundy with five hundred knights and + ten thousand foot, for the service of the Holy Land. The king of England, + though inferior in dignity, surpassed his rival in wealth and military + renown; <a href="#linkAnote-72" name="linkAnoteref-72" id="linkAnoteref-72">72</a> + and if heroism be confined to brutal and ferocious valor, Richard + Plantagenet will stand high among the heroes of the age. The memory of <i>Cur + de Lion</i>, of the lion-hearted prince, was long dear and glorious to his + English subjects; and, at the distance of sixty years, it was celebrated + in proverbial sayings by the grandsons of the Turks and Saracens, against + whom he had fought: his tremendous name was employed by the Syrian mothers + to silence their infants; and if a horse suddenly started from the way, + his rider was wont to exclaim, "Dost thou think King Richard is in that + bush?" <a href="#linkAnote-73" name="linkAnoteref-73" id="linkAnoteref-73">73</a> + His cruelty to the Mahometans was the effect of temper and zeal; but I + cannot believe that a soldier, so free and fearless in the use of his + lance, would have descended to whet a dagger against his valiant brother + Conrad of Montferrat, who was slain at Tyre by some secret assassins. <a + href="#linkAnote-74" name="linkAnoteref-74" id="linkAnoteref-74">74</a> + After the surrender of Acre, and the departure of Philip, the king of + England led the crusaders to the recovery of the sea-coast; and the cities + of Cæsarea and Jaffa were added to the fragments of the kingdom of + Lusignan. A march of one hundred miles from Acre to Ascalon was a great + and perpetual battle of eleven days. In the disorder of his troops, + Saladin remained on the field with seventeen guards, without lowering his + standard, or suspending the sound of his brazen kettle-drum: he again + rallied and renewed the charge; and his preachers or heralds called aloud + on the <i>unitarians</i>, manfully to stand up against the Christian + idolaters. But the progress of these idolaters was irresistible; and it + was only by demolishing the walls and buildings of Ascalon, that the + sultan could prevent them from occupying an important fortress on the + confines of Egypt. During a severe winter, the armies slept; but in the + spring, the Franks advanced within a day's march of Jerusalem, under the + leading standard of the English king; and his active spirit intercepted a + convoy, or caravan, of seven thousand camels. Saladin <a + href="#linkAnote-75" name="linkAnoteref-75" id="linkAnoteref-75">75</a> + had fixed his station in the holy city; but the city was struck with + consternation and discord: he fasted; he prayed; he preached; he offered + to share the dangers of the siege; but his Mamalukes, who remembered the + fate of their companions at Acre, pressed the sultan with loyal or + seditious clamors, to reserve <i>his</i> person and <i>their</i> courage + for the future defence of the religion and empire. <a href="#linkAnote-76" + name="linkAnoteref-76" id="linkAnoteref-76">76</a> The Moslems were + delivered by the sudden, or, as they deemed, the miraculous, retreat of + the Christians; <a href="#linkAnote-77" name="linkAnoteref-77" + id="linkAnoteref-77">77</a> and the laurels of Richard were blasted by the + prudence, or envy, of his companions. The hero, ascending a hill, and + veiling his face, exclaimed with an indignant voice, "Those who are + unwilling to rescue, are unworthy to view, the sepulchre of Christ!" After + his return to Acre, on the news that Jaffa was surprised by the sultan, he + sailed with some merchant vessels, and leaped foremost on the beach: the + castle was relieved by his presence; and sixty thousand Turks and Saracens + fled before his arms. The discovery of his weakness, provoked them to + return in the morning; and they found him carelessly encamped before the + gates with only seventeen knights and three hundred archers. Without + counting their numbers, he sustained their charge; and we learn from the + evidence of his enemies, that the king of England, grasping his lance, + rode furiously along their front, from the right to the left wing, without + meeting an adversary who dared to encounter his career. <a + href="#linkAnote-78" name="linkAnoteref-78" id="linkAnoteref-78">78</a> Am + I writing the history of Orlando or Amadis? + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-71" id="linkAnote-71"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 71 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-71">return</a>)<br /> [ Magnus hic apud eos, + interque reges eorum tum virtute tum majestate eminens.... summus rerum + arbiter, (Bohadin, p. 159.) He does not seem to have known the names + either of Philip or Richard.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-72" id="linkAnote-72"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 72 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-72">return</a>)<br /> [ Rex Angliæ, + præstrenuus.... rege Gallorum minor apud eos censebatur ratione regni + atque dignitatis; sed tum divitiis florentior, tum bellicâ virtute multo + erat celebrior, (Bohadin, p. 161.) A stranger might admire those riches; + the national historians will tell with what lawless and wasteful + oppression they were collected.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-73" id="linkAnote-73"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 73 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-73">return</a>)<br /> [ Joinville, p. 17. + Cuides-tu que ce soit le roi Richart?] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-74" id="linkAnote-74"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 74 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-74">return</a>)<br /> [ Yet he was guilty in the + opinion of the Moslems, who attest the confession of the assassins, that + they were sent by the king of England, (Bohadin, p. 225;) and his only + defence is an absurd and palpable forgery, (Hist. de l'Académie des + Inscriptions, tom. xv. p. 155—163,) a pretended letter from the + prince of the assassins, the Sheich, or old man of the mountain, who + justified Richard, by assuming to himself the guilt or merit of the + murder. * + </p> + <p> + Note: * Von Hammer (Geschichte der Assassinen, p. 202) sums up against + Richard, Wilken (vol. iv. p. 485) as strongly for acquittal. Michaud (vol. + ii. p. 420) delivers no decided opinion. This crime was also attributed to + Saladin, who is said, by an Oriental authority, (the continuator of + Tabari,) to have employed the assassins to murder both Conrad and Richard. + It is a melancholy admission, but it must be acknowledged, that such an + act would be less inconsistent with the character of the Christian than of + the Mahometan king.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-75" id="linkAnote-75"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 75 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-75">return</a>)<br /> [ See the distress and + pious firmness of Saladin, as they are described by Bohadin, (p. 7—9, + 235—237,) who himself harangued the defenders of Jerusalem; their + fears were not unknown to the enemy, (Jacob. à Vitriaco, l. i. c. 100, p. + 1123. Vinisauf, l. v. c. 50, p. 399.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-76" id="linkAnote-76"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 76 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-76">return</a>)<br /> [ Yet unless the sultan, + or an Ayoubite prince, remained in Jerusalem, nec Curdi Turcis, nec Turci + essent obtemperaturi Curdis, (Bohadin, p. 236.) He draws aside a corner of + the political curtain.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-77" id="linkAnote-77"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 77 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-77">return</a>)<br /> [ Bohadin, (p. 237,) and + even Jeffrey de Vinisauf, (l. vi. c. 1—8, p. 403—409,) ascribe + the retreat to Richard himself; and Jacobus à Vitriaco observes, that in + his impatience to depart, in alterum virum mutatus est, (p. 1123.) Yet + Joinville, a French knight, accuses the envy of Hugh duke of Burgundy, (p. + 116,) without supposing, like Matthew Paris, that he was bribed by + Saladin.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-78" id="linkAnote-78"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 78 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-78">return</a>)<br /> [ The expeditions to + Ascalon, Jerusalem, and Jaffa, are related by Bohadin (p. 184—249) + and Abulfeda, (p. 51, 52.) The author of the Itinerary, or the monk of St. + Alban's, cannot exaggerate the cadhi's account of the prowess of Richard, + (Vinisauf, l. vi. c. 14—24, p. 412—421. Hist. Major, p. 137—143;) + and on the whole of this war there is a marvellous agreement between the + Christian and Mahometan writers, who mutually praise the virtues of their + enemies.] + </p> + <p> + During these hostilities, a languid and tedious negotiation <a + href="#linkAnote-79" name="linkAnoteref-79" id="linkAnoteref-79">79</a> + between the Franks and Moslems was started, and continued, and broken, and + again resumed, and again broken. Some acts of royal courtesy, the gift of + snow and fruit, the exchange of Norway hawks and Arabian horses, softened + the asperity of religious war: from the vicissitude of success, the + monarchs might learn to suspect that Heaven was neutral in the quarrel; + nor, after the trial of each other, could either hope for a decisive + victory. <a href="#linkAnote-80" name="linkAnoteref-80" + id="linkAnoteref-80">80</a> The health both of Richard and Saladin + appeared to be in a declining state; and they respectively suffered the + evils of distant and domestic warfare: Plantagenet was impatient to punish + a perfidious rival who had invaded Normandy in his absence; and the + indefatigable sultan was subdued by the cries of the people, who was the + victim, and of the soldiers, who were the instruments, of his martial + zeal. The first demands of the king of England were the restitution of + Jerusalem, Palestine, and the true cross; and he firmly declared, that + himself and his brother pilgrims would end their lives in the pious labor, + rather than return to Europe with ignominy and remorse. But the conscience + of Saladin refused, without some weighty compensation, to restore the + idols, or promote the idolatry, of the Christians; he asserted, with equal + firmness, his religious and civil claim to the sovereignty of Palestine; + descanted on the importance and sanctity of Jerusalem; and rejected all + terms of the establishment, or partition of the Latins. The marriage which + Richard proposed, of his sister with the sultan's brother, was defeated by + the difference of faith; the princess abhorred the embraces of a Turk; and + Adel, or Saphadin, would not easily renounce a plurality of wives. A + personal interview was declined by Saladin, who alleged their mutual + ignorance of each other's language; and the negotiation was managed with + much art and delay by their interpreters and envoys. The final agreement + was equally disapproved by the zealots of both parties, by the Roman + pontiff and the caliph of Bagdad. It was stipulated that Jerusalem and the + holy sepulchre should be open, without tribute or vexation, to the + pilgrimage of the Latin Christians; that, after the demolition of Ascalon, + they should inclusively possess the sea-coast from Jaffa to Tyre; that the + count of Tripoli and the prince of Antioch should be comprised in the + truce; and that, during three years and three months, all hostilities + should cease. The principal chiefs of the two armies swore to the + observance of the treaty; but the monarchs were satisfied with giving + their word and their right hand; and the royal majesty was excused from an + oath, which always implies some suspicion of falsehood and dishonor. + Richard embarked for Europe, to seek a long captivity and a premature + grave; and the space of a few months concluded the life and glories of + Saladin. The Orientals describe his edifying death, which happened at + Damascus; but they seem ignorant of the equal distribution of his alms + among the three religions, <a href="#linkAnote-81" name="linkAnoteref-81" + id="linkAnoteref-81">81</a> or of the display of a shroud, instead of a + standard, to admonish the East of the instability of human greatness. The + unity of empire was dissolved by his death; his sons were oppressed by the + stronger arm of their uncle Saphadin; the hostile interests of the sultans + of Egypt, Damascus, and Aleppo, <a href="#linkAnote-82" + name="linkAnoteref-82" id="linkAnoteref-82">82</a> were again revived; and + the Franks or Latins stood and breathed, and hoped, in their fortresses + along the Syrian coast. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-79" id="linkAnote-79"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 79 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-79">return</a>)<br /> [ See the progress of + negotiation and hostility in Bohadin, (p. 207—260,) who was himself + an actor in the treaty. Richard declared his intention of returning with + new armies to the conquest of the Holy Land; and Saladin answered the + menace with a civil compliment, (Vinisauf l. vi. c. 28, p. 423.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-80" id="linkAnote-80"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 80 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-80">return</a>)<br /> [ The most copious and + original account of this holy war is Galfridi à Vinisauf, Itinerarium + Regis Anglorum Richardi et aliorum in Terram Hierosolymorum, in six books, + published in the iid volume of Gale's Scriptores Hist. Anglicanæ, (p. 247—429.) + Roger Hoveden and Matthew Paris afford likewise many valuable materials; + and the former describes, with accuracy, the discipline and navigation of + the English fleet.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-81" id="linkAnote-81"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 81 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-81">return</a>)<br /> [ Even Vertot (tom. i. p. + 251) adopts the foolish notion of the indifference of Saladin, who + professed the Koran with his last breath.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-82" id="linkAnote-82"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 82 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-82">return</a>)<br /> [ See the succession of + the Ayoubites, in Abulpharagius, (Dynast. p. 277, &c.,) and the tables + of M. De Guignes, l'Art de Vérifier les Dates, and the Bibliothèque + Orientale.] + </p> + <p> + The noblest monument of a conqueror's fame, and of the terror which he + inspired, is the Saladine tenth, a general tax which was imposed on the + laity, and even the clergy, of the Latin church, for the service of the + holy war. The practice was too lucrative to expire with the occasion: and + this tribute became the foundation of all the tithes and tenths on + ecclesiastical benefices, which have been granted by the Roman pontiffs to + Catholic sovereigns, or reserved for the immediate use of the apostolic + see. <a href="#linkAnote-83" name="linkAnoteref-83" id="linkAnoteref-83">83</a> + This pecuniary emolument must have tended to increase the interest of the + popes in the recovery of Palestine: after the death of Saladin, they + preached the crusade, by their epistles, their legates, and their + missionaries; and the accomplishment of the pious work might have been + expected from the zeal and talents of Innocent the Third. <a + href="#linkAnote-84" name="linkAnoteref-84" id="linkAnoteref-84">84</a> + Under that young and ambitious priest, the successors of St. Peter + attained the full meridian of their greatness: and in a reign of eighteen + years, he exercised a despotic command over the emperors and kings, whom + he raised and deposed; over the nations, whom an interdict of months or + years deprived, for the offence of their rulers, of the exercise of + Christian worship. In the council of the Lateran he acted as the + ecclesiastical, almost as the temporal, sovereign of the East and West. It + was at the feet of his legate that John of England surrendered his crown; + and Innocent may boast of the two most signal triumphs over sense and + humanity, the establishment of transubstantiation, and the origin of the + inquisition. At his voice, two crusades, the fourth and the fifth, were + undertaken; but, except a king of Hungary, the princes of the second order + were at the head of the pilgrims: the forces were inadequate to the + design; nor did the effects correspond with the hopes and wishes of the + pope and the people. The fourth crusade was diverted from Syria to + Constantinople; and the conquest of the Greek or Roman empire by the + Latins will form the proper and important subject of the next chapter. In + the fifth, <a href="#linkAnote-85" name="linkAnoteref-85" + id="linkAnoteref-85">85</a> two hundred thousand Franks were landed at the + eastern mouth of the Nile. They reasonably hoped that Palestine must be + subdued in Egypt, the seat and storehouse of the sultan; and, after a + siege of sixteen months, the Moslems deplored the loss of Damietta. But + the Christian army was ruined by the pride and insolence of the legate + Pelagius, who, in the pope's name, assumed the character of general: the + sickly Franks were encompassed by the waters of the Nile and the Oriental + forces; and it was by the evacuation of Damietta that they obtained a safe + retreat, some concessions for the pilgrims, and the tardy restitution of + the doubtful relic of the true cross. The failure may in some measure be + ascribed to the abuse and multiplication of the crusades, which were + preached at the same time against the Pagans of Livonia, the Moors of + Spain, the Albigeois of France, and the kings of Sicily of the Imperial + family. <a href="#linkAnote-86" name="linkAnoteref-86" id="linkAnoteref-86">86</a> + In these meritorious services, the volunteers might acquire at home the + same spiritual indulgence, and a larger measure of temporal rewards; and + even the popes, in their zeal against a domestic enemy, were sometimes + tempted to forget the distress of their Syrian brethren. From the last age + of the crusades they derived the occasional command of an army and + revenue; and some deep reasoners have suspected that the whole enterprise, + from the first synod of Placentia, was contrived and executed by the + policy of Rome. The suspicion is not founded, either in nature or in fact. + The successors of St. Peter appear to have followed, rather than guided, + the impulse of manners and prejudice; without much foresight of the + seasons, or cultivation of the soil, they gathered the ripe and + spontaneous fruits of the superstition of the times. They gathered these + fruits without toil or personal danger: in the council of the Lateran, + Innocent the Third declared an ambiguous resolution of animating the + crusaders by his example; but the pilot of the sacred vessel could not + abandon the helm; nor was Palestine ever blessed with the presence of a + Roman pontiff. <a href="#linkAnote-87" name="linkAnoteref-87" + id="linkAnoteref-87">87</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-83" id="linkAnote-83"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 83 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-83">return</a>)<br /> [ Thomassin (Discipline de + l'Eglise, tom. iii. p. 311—374) has copiously treated of the origin, + abuses, and restrictions of these <i>tenths</i>. A theory was started, but + not pursued, that they were rightfully due to the pope, a tenth of the + Levite's tenth to the high priest, (Selden on Tithes; see his Works, vol. + iii. p. ii. p. 1083.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-84" id="linkAnote-84"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 84 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-84">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Gesta Innocentii + III. in Murat. Script. Rer. Ital., (tom. iii. p. 486—568.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-85" id="linkAnote-85"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 85 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-85">return</a>)<br /> [ See the vth crusade, and + the siege of Damietta, in Jacobus à Vitriaco, (l. iii. p. 1125—1149, + in the Gesta Dei of Bongarsius,) an eye-witness, Bernard Thesaurarius, (in + Script. Muratori, tom. vii. p. 825—846, c. 190—207,) a + contemporary, and Sanutus, (Secreta Fidel Crucis, l. iii. p. xi. c. 4—9,) + a diligent compiler; and of the Arabians Abulpharagius, (Dynast. p. 294,) + and the Extracts at the end of Joinville, (p. 533, 537, 540, 547, &c.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-86" id="linkAnote-86"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 86 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-86">return</a>)<br /> [ To those who took the + cross against Mainfroy, the pope (A.D. 1255) granted plenissimam + peccatorum remissionem. Fideles mirabantur quòd tantum eis promitteret pro + sanguine Christianorum effundendo quantum pro cruore infidelium aliquando, + (Matthew Paris p. 785.) A high flight for the reason of the xiiith + century.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-87" id="linkAnote-87"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 87 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-87">return</a>)<br /> [ This simple idea is + agreeable to the good sense of Mosheim, (Institut. Hist. Ecclés. p. 332,) + and the fine philosophy of Hume, (Hist. of England, vol. i. p. 330.)] + </p> + <p> + The persons, the families, and estates of the pilgrims, were under the + immediate protection of the popes; and these spiritual patrons soon + claimed the prerogative of directing their operations, and enforcing, by + commands and censures, the accomplishment of their vow. Frederic the + Second, <a href="#linkAnote-88" name="linkAnoteref-88" id="linkAnoteref-88">88</a> + the grandson of Barbarossa, was successively the pupil, the enemy, and the + victim of the church. At the age of twenty-one years, and in obedience to + his guardian Innocent the Third, he assumed the cross; the same promise + was repeated at his royal and imperial coronations; and his marriage with + the heiress of Jerusalem forever bound him to defend the kingdom of his + son Conrad. But as Frederic advanced in age and authority, he repented of + the rash engagements of his youth: his liberal sense and knowledge taught + him to despise the phantoms of superstition and the crowns of Asia: he no + longer entertained the same reverence for the successors of Innocent: and + his ambition was occupied by the restoration of the Italian monarchy from + Sicily to the Alps. But the success of this project would have reduced the + popes to their primitive simplicity; and, after the delays and excuses of + twelve years, they urged the emperor, with entreaties and threats, to fix + the time and place of his departure for Palestine. In the harbors of + Sicily and Apulia, he prepared a fleet of one hundred galleys, and of one + hundred vessels, that were framed to transport and land two thousand five + hundred knights, with their horses and attendants; his vassals of Naples + and Germany formed a powerful army; and the number of English crusaders + was magnified to sixty thousand by the report of fame. But the inevitable + or affected slowness of these mighty preparations consumed the strength + and provisions of the more indigent pilgrims: the multitude was thinned by + sickness and desertion; and the sultry summer of Calabria anticipated the + mischiefs of a Syrian campaign. At length the emperor hoisted sail at + Brundusium, with a fleet and army of forty thousand men: but he kept the + sea no more than three days; and his hasty retreat, which was ascribed by + his friends to a grievous indisposition, was accused by his enemies as a + voluntary and obstinate disobedience. For suspending his vow was Frederic + excommunicated by Gregory the Ninth; for presuming, the next year, to + accomplish his vow, he was again excommunicated by the same pope. <a + href="#linkAnote-89" name="linkAnoteref-89" id="linkAnoteref-89">89</a> + While he served under the banner of the cross, a crusade was preached + against him in Italy; and after his return he was compelled to ask pardon + for the injuries which he had suffered. The clergy and military orders of + Palestine were previously instructed to renounce his communion and dispute + his commands; and in his own kingdom, the emperor was forced to consent + that the orders of the camp should be issued in the name of God and of the + Christian republic. Frederic entered Jerusalem in triumph; and with his + own hands (for no priest would perform the office) he took the crown from + the altar of the holy sepulchre. But the patriarch cast an interdict on + the church which his presence had profaned; and the knights of the + hospital and temple informed the sultan how easily he might be surprised + and slain in his unguarded visit to the River Jordan. In such a state of + fanaticism and faction, victory was hopeless, and defence was difficult; + but the conclusion of an advantageous peace may be imputed to the discord + of the Mahometans, and their personal esteem for the character of + Frederic. The enemy of the church is accused of maintaining with the + miscreants an intercourse of hospitality and friendship unworthy of a + Christian; of despising the barrenness of the land; and of indulging a + profane thought, that if Jehovah had seen the kingdom of Naples he never + would have selected Palestine for the inheritance of his chosen people. + Yet Frederic obtained from the sultan the restitution of Jerusalem, of + Bethlem and Nazareth, of Tyre and Sidon; the Latins were allowed to + inhabit and fortify the city; an equal code of civil and religious freedom + was ratified for the sectaries of Jesus and those of Mahomet; and, while + the former worshipped at the holy sepulchre, the latter might pray and + preach in the mosque of the temple, <a href="#linkAnote-90" + name="linkAnoteref-90" id="linkAnoteref-90">90</a> from whence the prophet + undertook his nocturnal journey to heaven. The clergy deplored this + scandalous toleration; and the weaker Moslems were gradually expelled; but + every rational object of the crusades was accomplished without bloodshed; + the churches were restored, the monasteries were replenished; and, in the + space of fifteen years, the Latins of Jerusalem exceeded the number of six + thousand. This peace and prosperity, for which they were ungrateful to + their benefactor, was terminated by the irruption of the strange and + savage hordes of Carizmians. <a href="#linkAnote-91" name="linkAnoteref-91" + id="linkAnoteref-91">91</a> Flying from the arms of the Moguls, those + shepherds <a href="#linkAnote-911" name="linkAnoteref-911" + id="linkAnoteref-911">911</a> of the Caspian rolled headlong on Syria; and + the union of the Franks with the sultans of Aleppo, Hems, and Damascus, + was insufficient to stem the violence of the torrent. Whatever stood + against them was cut off by the sword, or dragged into captivity: the + military orders were almost exterminated in a single battle; and in the + pillage of the city, in the profanation of the holy sepulchre, the Latins + confess and regret the modesty and discipline of the Turks and Saracens. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-88" id="linkAnote-88"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 88 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-88">return</a>)<br /> [ The original materials + for the crusade of Frederic II. may be drawn from Richard de St. Germano + (in Muratori, Script. Rerum Ital. tom. vii. p. 1002—1013) and + Matthew Paris, (p. 286, 291, 300, 302, 304.) The most rational moderns are + Fleury, (Hist. Ecclés. tom. xvi.,) Vertot, (Chevaliers de Malthe, tom. i. + l. iii.,) Giannone, (Istoria Civile di Napoli, tom. ii. l. xvi.,) and + Muratori, (Annali d' Italia, tom. x.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-89" id="linkAnote-89"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 89 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-89">return</a>)<br /> [ Poor Muratori knows what + to think, but knows not what to say: "Chino qui il capo," &c. p. 322.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-90" id="linkAnote-90"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 90 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-90">return</a>)<br /> [ The clergy artfully + confounded the mosque or church of the temple with the holy sepulchre, and + their wilful error has deceived both Vertot and Muratori.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-91" id="linkAnote-91"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 91 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-91">return</a>)<br /> [ The irruption of the + Carizmians, or Corasmins, is related by Matthew Paris, (p. 546, 547,) and + by Joinville, Nangis, and the Arabians, (p. 111, 112, 191, 192, 528, + 530.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-911" id="linkAnote-911"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 911 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-911">return</a>)<br /> [ They were in alliance + with Eyub, sultan of Syria. Wilken vol. vi. p. 630.—M.] + </p> + <p> + Of the seven crusades, the two last were undertaken by Louis the Ninth, + king of France; who lost his liberty in Egypt, and his life on the coast + of Africa. Twenty-eight years after his death, he was canonized at Rome; + and sixty-five miracles were readily found, and solemnly attested, to + justify the claim of the royal saint. <a href="#linkAnote-92" + name="linkAnoteref-92" id="linkAnoteref-92">92</a> The voice of history + renders a more honorable testimony, that he united the virtues of a king, + a hero, and a man; that his martial spirit was tempered by the love of + private and public justice; and that Louis was the father of his people, + the friend of his neighbors, and the terror of the infidels. Superstition + alone, in all the extent of her baleful influence, <a href="#linkAnote-93" + name="linkAnoteref-93" id="linkAnoteref-93">93</a> corrupted his + understanding and his heart: his devotion stooped to admire and imitate + the begging friars of Francis and Dominic: he pursued with blind and cruel + zeal the enemies of the faith; and the best of kings twice descended from + his throne to seek the adventures of a spiritual knight-errant. A monkish + historian would have been content to applaud the most despicable part of + his character; but the noble and gallant Joinville, <a href="#linkAnote-94" + name="linkAnoteref-94" id="linkAnoteref-94">94</a> who shared the + friendship and captivity of Louis, has traced with the pencil of nature + the free portrait of his virtues as well as of his failings. From this + intimate knowledge we may learn to suspect the political views of + depressing their great vassals, which are so often imputed to the royal + authors of the crusades. Above all the princes of the middle ages, Louis + the Ninth successfully labored to restore the prerogatives of the crown; + but it was at home and not in the East, that he acquired for himself and + his posterity: his vow was the result of enthusiasm and sickness; and if + he were the promoter, he was likewise the victim, of his holy madness. For + the invasion of Egypt, France was exhausted of her troops and treasures; + he covered the sea of Cyprus with eighteen hundred sails; the most modest + enumeration amounts to fifty thousand men; and, if we might trust his own + confession, as it is reported by Oriental vanity, he disembarked nine + thousand five hundred horse, and one hundred and thirty thousand foot, who + performed their pilgrimage under the shadow of his power. <a + href="#linkAnote-95" name="linkAnoteref-95" id="linkAnoteref-95">95</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-92" id="linkAnote-92"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 92 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-92">return</a>)<br /> [ Read, if you can, the + Life and Miracles of St. Louis, by the confessor of Queen Margaret, (p. + 291—523. Joinville, du Louvre.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-93" id="linkAnote-93"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 93 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-93">return</a>)<br /> [ He believed all that + mother church taught, (Joinville, p. 10,) but he cautioned Joinville + against disputing with infidels. "L'omme lay (said he in his old language) + quand il ot medire de la loi Crestienne, ne doit pas deffendre la loi + Crestienne ne mais que de l'espée, dequoi il doit donner parmi le ventre + dedens, tant comme elle y peut entrer" (p. 12.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-94" id="linkAnote-94"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 94 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-94">return</a>)<br /> [ I have two editions of + Joinville, the one (Paris, 1668) most valuable for the observations of + Ducange; the other (Paris, au Louvre, 1761) most precious for the pure and + authentic text, a MS. of which has been recently discovered. The last + edition proves that the history of St. Louis was finished A.D. 1309, + without explaining, or even admiring, the age of the author, which must + have exceeded ninety years, (Preface, p. x. Observations de Ducange, p. + 17.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-95" id="linkAnote-95"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 95 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-95">return</a>)<br /> [ Joinville, p. 32. Arabic + Extracts, p. 549. * + </p> + <p> + Note: * Compare Wilken, vol. vii. p. 94.—M.] + </p> + <p> + In complete armor, the oriflamme waving before him, Louis leaped foremost + on the beach; and the strong city of Damietta, which had cost his + predecessors a siege of sixteen months, was abandoned on the first assault + by the trembling Moslems. But Damietta was the first and the last of his + conquests; and in the fifth and sixth crusades, the same causes, almost on + the same ground, were productive of similar calamities. <a + href="#linkAnote-96" name="linkAnoteref-96" id="linkAnoteref-96">96</a> + After a ruinous delay, which introduced into the camp the seeds of an + epidemic disease, the Franks advanced from the sea-coast towards the + capital of Egypt, and strove to surmount the unseasonable inundation of + the Nile, which opposed their progress. Under the eye of their intrepid + monarch, the barons and knights of France displayed their invincible + contempt of danger and discipline: his brother, the count of Artois, + stormed with inconsiderate valor the town of Massoura; and the carrier + pigeons announced to the inhabitants of Cairo that all was lost. But a + soldier, who afterwards usurped the sceptre, rallied the flying troops: + the main body of the Christians was far behind the vanguard; and Artois + was overpowered and slain. A shower of Greek fire was incessantly poured + on the invaders; the Nile was commanded by the Egyptian galleys, the open + country by the Arabs; all provisions were intercepted; each day aggravated + the sickness and famine; and about the same time a retreat was found to be + necessary and impracticable. The Oriental writers confess, that Louis + might have escaped, if he would have deserted his subjects; he was made + prisoner, with the greatest part of his nobles; all who could not redeem + their lives by service or ransom were inhumanly massacred; and the walls + of Cairo were decorated with a circle of Christian heads. <a + href="#linkAnote-97" name="linkAnoteref-97" id="linkAnoteref-97">97</a> + The king of France was loaded with chains; but the generous victor, a + great-grandson of the brother of Saladin, sent a robe of honor to his + royal captive, and his deliverance, with that of his soldiers, was + obtained by the restitution of Damietta <a href="#linkAnote-98" + name="linkAnoteref-98" id="linkAnoteref-98">98</a> and the payment of four + hundred thousand pieces of gold. In a soft and luxurious climate, the + degenerate children of the companions of Noureddin and Saladin were + incapable of resisting the flower of European chivalry: they triumphed by + the arms of their slaves or Mamalukes, the hardy natives of Tartary, who + at a tender age had been purchased of the Syrian merchants, and were + educated in the camp and palace of the sultan. But Egypt soon afforded a + new example of the danger of prætorian bands; and the rage of these + ferocious animals, who had been let loose on the strangers, was provoked + to devour their benefactor. In the pride of conquest, Touran Shaw, the + last of his race, was murdered by his Mamalukes; and the most daring of + the assassins entered the chamber of the captive king, with drawn + cimeters, and their hands imbrued in the blood of their sultan. The + firmness of Louis commanded their respect; <a href="#linkAnote-99" + name="linkAnoteref-99" id="linkAnoteref-99">99</a> their avarice prevailed + over cruelty and zeal; the treaty was accomplished; and the king of + France, with the relics of his army, was permitted to embark for + Palestine. He wasted four years within the walls of Acre, unable to visit + Jerusalem, and unwilling to return without glory to his native country. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-96" id="linkAnote-96"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 96 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-96">return</a>)<br /> [ The last editors have + enriched their Joinville with large and curious extracts from the Arabic + historians, Macrizi, Abulfeda, &c. See likewise Abulpharagius, + (Dynast. p. 322—325,) who calls him by the corrupt name of <i>Redefrans</i>. + Matthew Paris (p. 683, 684) has described the rival folly of the French + and English who fought and fell at Massoura.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-97" id="linkAnote-97"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 97 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-97">return</a>)<br /> [ Savary, in his agreeable + Letters sur L'Egypte, has given a description of Damietta, (tom. i. lettre + xxiii. p. 274—290,) and a narrative of the exposition of St. Louis, + (xxv. p. 306—350.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-98" id="linkAnote-98"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 98 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-98">return</a>)<br /> [ For the ransom of St. + Louis, a million of byzants was asked and granted; but the sultan's + generosity reduced that sum to 800,000 byzants, which are valued by + Joinville at 400,000 French livres of his own time, and expressed by + Matthew Paris by 100,000 marks of silver, (Ducange, Dissertation xx. sur + Joinville.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-99" id="linkAnote-99"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 99 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-99">return</a>)<br /> [ The idea of the emirs to + choose Louis for their sultan is seriously attested by Joinville, (p. 77, + 78,) and does not appear to me so absurd as to M. de Voltaire, (Hist. + Générale, tom. ii. p. 386, 387.) The Mamalukes themselves were strangers, + rebels, and equals: they had felt his valor, they hoped his conversion; + and such a motion, which was not seconded, might be made, perhaps by a + secret Christian in their tumultuous assembly. * + </p> + <p> + Note: * Wilken, vol. vii. p. 257, thinks the proposition could not have + been made in earnest.—M.] + </p> + <p> + The memory of his defeat excited Louis, after sixteen years of wisdom and + repose, to undertake the seventh and last of the crusades. His finances + were restored, his kingdom was enlarged; a new generation of warriors had + arisen, and he advanced with fresh confidence at the head of six thousand + horse and thirty thousand foot. The loss of Antioch had provoked the + enterprise; a wild hope of baptizing the king of Tunis tempted him to + steer for the African coast; and the report of an immense treasure + reconciled his troops to the delay of their voyage to the Holy Land. + Instead of a proselyte, he found a siege: the French panted and died on + the burning sands: St. Louis expired in his tent; and no sooner had he + closed his eyes, than his son and successor gave the signal of the + retreat. <a href="#linkAnote-100" name="linkAnoteref-100" + id="linkAnoteref-100">100</a> "It is thus," says a lively writer, "that a + Christian king died near the ruins of Carthage, waging war against the + sectaries of Mahomet, in a land to which Dido had introduced the deities + of Syria." <a href="#linkAnote-101" name="linkAnoteref-101" + id="linkAnoteref-101">101</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-100" id="linkAnote-100"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 100 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-100">return</a>)<br /> [ See the expedition in + the annals of St. Louis, by William de Nangis, p. 270—287; and the + Arabic extracts, p. 545, 555, of the Louvre edition of Joinville.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-101" id="linkAnote-101"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 101 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-101">return</a>)<br /> [ Voltaire, Hist. + Générale, tom. ii. p. 391.] + </p> + <p> + A more unjust and absurd constitution cannot be devised than that which + condemns the natives of a country to perpetual servitude, under the + arbitrary dominion of strangers and slaves. Yet such has been the state of + Egypt above five hundred years. The most illustrious sultans of the + Baharite and Borgite dynasties <a href="#linkAnote-102" + name="linkAnoteref-102" id="linkAnoteref-102">102</a> were themselves + promoted from the Tartar and Circassian bands; and the four-and-twenty + beys, or military chiefs, have ever been succeeded, not by their sons, but + by their servants. They produce the great charter of their liberties, the + treaty of Selim the First with the republic: <a href="#linkAnote-103" + name="linkAnoteref-103" id="linkAnoteref-103">103</a> and the Othman + emperor still accepts from Egypt a slight acknowledgment of tribute and + subjection. With some breathing intervals of peace and order, the two + dynasties are marked as a period of rapine and bloodshed: <a + href="#linkAnote-104" name="linkAnoteref-104" id="linkAnoteref-104">104</a> + but their throne, however shaken, reposed on the two pillars of discipline + and valor: their sway extended over Egypt, Nubia, Arabia, and Syria: their + Mamalukes were multiplied from eight hundred to twenty-five thousand + horse; and their numbers were increased by a provincial militia of one + hundred and seven thousand foot, and the occasional aid of sixty-six + thousand Arabs. <a href="#linkAnote-105" name="linkAnoteref-105" + id="linkAnoteref-105">105</a> Princes of such power and spirit could not + long endure on their coast a hostile and independent nation; and if the + ruin of the Franks was postponed about forty years, they were indebted to + the cares of an unsettled reign, to the invasion of the Moguls, and to the + occasional aid of some warlike pilgrims. Among these, the English reader + will observe the name of our first Edward, who assumed the cross in the + lifetime of his father Henry. At the head of a thousand soldiers the + future conqueror of Wales and Scotland delivered Acre from a siege; + marched as far as Nazareth with an army of nine thousand men; emulated the + fame of his uncle Richard; extorted, by his valor, a ten years' truce; <a + href="#linkAnote-1051" name="linkAnoteref-1051" id="linkAnoteref-1051">1051</a> + and escaped, with a dangerous wound, from the dagger of a fanatic <i>assassin</i>. + <a href="#linkAnote-106" name="linkAnoteref-106" id="linkAnoteref-106">106</a> + <a href="#linkAnote-1061" name="linkAnoteref-1061" id="linkAnoteref-1061">1061</a> + Antioch, <a href="#linkAnote-107" name="linkAnoteref-107" + id="linkAnoteref-107">107</a> whose situation had been less exposed to the + calamities of the holy war, was finally occupied and ruined by Bondocdar, + or Bibars, sultan of Egypt and Syria; the Latin principality was + extinguished; and the first seat of the Christian name was dispeopled by + the slaughter of seventeen, and the captivity of one hundred, thousand of + her inhabitants. The maritime towns of Laodicea, Gabala, Tripoli, Berytus, + Sidon, Tyre and Jaffa, and the stronger castles of the Hospitallers and + Templars, successively fell; and the whole existence of the Franks was + confined to the city and colony of St. John of Acre, which is sometimes + described by the more classic title of Ptolemais. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-102" id="linkAnote-102"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 102 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-102">return</a>)<br /> [ The chronology of the + two dynasties of Mamalukes, the Baharites, Turks or Tartars of Kipzak, and + the Borgites, Circassians, is given by Pocock (Prolegom. ad Abulpharag. p. + 6—31) and De Guignes (tom. i. p. 264—270;) their history from + Abulfeda, Macrizi, &c., to the beginning of the xvth century, by the + same M. De Guignes, (tom. iv. p. 110—328.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-103" id="linkAnote-103"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 103 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-103">return</a>)<br /> [ Savary, Lettres sur + l'Egypte, tom. ii. lettre xv. p. 189—208. I much question the + authenticity of this copy; yet it is true, that Sultan Selim concluded a + treaty with the Circassians or Mamalukes of Egypt, and left them in + possession of arms, riches, and power. See a new Abrégé de l'Histoire + Ottomane, composed in Egypt, and translated by M. Digeon, (tom. i. p. 55—58, + Paris, 1781,) a curious, authentic, and national history.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-104" id="linkAnote-104"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 104 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-104">return</a>)<br /> [ Si totum quo regnum + occupârunt tempus respicias, præsertim quod fini propius, reperies illud + bellis, pugnis, injuriis, ac rapinis refertum, (Al Jannabi, apud Pocock, + p. 31.) The reign of Mohammed (A.D. 1311—1341) affords a happy + exception, (De Guignes, tom. iv. p. 208—210.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-105" id="linkAnote-105"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 105 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-105">return</a>)<br /> [ They are now reduced + to 8500: but the expense of each Mamaluke may be rated at a hundred louis: + and Egypt groans under the avarice and insolence of these strangers, + (Voyages de Volney, tom. i. p. 89—187.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-1051" id="linkAnote-1051"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1051 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-1051">return</a>)<br /> [ Gibbon colors rather + highly the success of Edward. Wilken is more accurate vol. vii. p. 593, + &c.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-106" id="linkAnote-106"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 106 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-106">return</a>)<br /> [ See Carte's History of + England, vol. ii. p. 165—175, and his original authors, Thomas Wikes + and Walter Hemingford, (l. iii. c. 34, 35,) in Gale's Collection, (tom. + ii. p. 97, 589—592.) They are both ignorant of the princess + Eleanor's piety in sucking the poisoned wound, and saving her husband at + the risk of her own life.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-1061" id="linkAnote-1061"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1061 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-1061">return</a>)<br /> [ The sultan Bibars + was concerned in this attempt at assassination Wilken, vol. vii. p. 602. + Ptolemæus Lucensis is the earliest authority for the devotion of Eleanora. + Ibid. 605.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-107" id="linkAnote-107"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 107 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-107">return</a>)<br /> [ Sanutus, Secret. + Fidelium Crucis, 1. iii. p. xii. c. 9, and De Guignes, Hist. des Huns, + tom. iv. p. 143, from the Arabic historians.] + </p> + <p> + After the loss of Jerusalem, Acre, <a href="#linkAnote-108" + name="linkAnoteref-108" id="linkAnoteref-108">108</a> which is distant + about seventy miles, became the metropolis of the Latin Christians, and + was adorned with strong and stately buildings, with aqueducts, an + artificial port, and a double wall. The population was increased by the + incessant streams of pilgrims and fugitives: in the pauses of hostility + the trade of the East and West was attracted to this convenient station; + and the market could offer the produce of every clime and the interpreters + of every tongue. But in this conflux of nations, every vice was propagated + and practised: of all the disciples of Jesus and Mahomet, the male and + female inhabitants of Acre were esteemed the most corrupt; nor could the + abuse of religion be corrected by the discipline of law. The city had many + sovereigns, and no government. The kings of Jerusalem and Cyprus, of the + house of Lusignan, the princes of Antioch, the counts of Tripoli and + Sidon, the great masters of the hospital, the temple, and the Teutonic + order, the republics of Venice, Genoa, and Pisa, the pope's legate, the + kings of France and England, assumed an independent command: seventeen + tribunals exercised the power of life and death; every criminal was + protected in the adjacent quarter; and the perpetual jealousy of the + nations often burst forth in acts of violence and blood. Some adventurers, + who disgraced the ensign of the cross, compensated their want of pay by + the plunder of the Mahometan villages: nineteen Syrian merchants, who + traded under the public faith, were despoiled and hanged by the + Christians; and the denial of satisfaction justified the arms of the + sultan Khalil. He marched against Acre, at the head of sixty thousand + horse and one hundred and forty thousand foot: his train of artillery (if + I may use the word) was numerous and weighty: the separate timbers of a + single engine were transported in one hundred wagons; and the royal + historian Abulfeda, who served with the troops of Hamah, was himself a + spectator of the holy war. Whatever might be the vices of the Franks, + their courage was rekindled by enthusiasm and despair; but they were torn + by the discord of seventeen chiefs, and overwhelmed on all sides by the + powers of the sultan. After a siege of thirty three days, the double wall + was forced by the Moslems; the principal tower yielded to their engines; + the Mamalukes made a general assault; the city was stormed; and death or + slavery was the lot of sixty thousand Christians. The convent, or rather + fortress, of the Templars resisted three days longer; but the great master + was pierced with an arrow; and, of five hundred knights, only ten were + left alive, less happy than the victims of the sword, if they lived to + suffer on a scaffold, in the unjust and cruel proscription of the whole + order. The king of Jerusalem, the patriarch and the great master of the + hospital, effected their retreat to the shore; but the sea was rough, the + vessels were insufficient; and great numbers of the fugitives were drowned + before they could reach the Isle of Cyprus, which might comfort Lusignan + for the loss of Palestine. By the command of the sultan, the churches and + fortifications of the Latin cities were demolished: a motive of avarice or + fear still opened the holy sepulchre to some devout and defenceless + pilgrims; and a mournful and solitary silence prevailed along the coast + which had so long resounded with the world's debate. <a + href="#linkAnote-109" name="linkAnoteref-109" id="linkAnoteref-109">109</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-108" id="linkAnote-108"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 108 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-108">return</a>)<br /> [ The state of Acre is + represented in all the chronicles of te times, and most accurately in John + Villani, l. vii. c. 144, in Muratori, Scriptores Rerum Italicarum, tom. + xiii. 337, 338.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkAnote-109" id="linkAnote-109"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 109 (<a href="#linkAnoteref-109">return</a>)<br /> [ See the final + expulsion of the Franks, in Sanutus, l. iii. p. xii. c. 11—22; + Abulfeda, Macrizi, &c., in De Guignes, tom. iv. p. 162, 164; and + Vertot, tom. i. l. iii. p. 307—428. * + </p> + <p> + Note: * After these chapters of Gibbon, the masterly prize composition, + "Essai sur 'Influence des Croisades sur l'Europe," par A H. L. Heeren: + traduit de l'Allemand par Charles Villars, Paris, 1808,' or the original + German, in Heeren's "Vermischte Schriften," may be read with great + advantage.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> ======================== <a name="linkB2HCH0001" + id="linkB2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + Chapter LX: The Fourth Crusade.—Part I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Schism Of The Greeks And Latins.—State Of Constantinople.— + Revolt Of The Bulgarians.—Isaac Angelus Dethroned By His + Brother Alexius.—Origin Of The Fourth Crusade.—Alliance Of + The French And Venetians With The Son Of Isaac.—Their Naval + Expedition To Constantinople.—The Two Sieges And Final + Conquest Of The City By The Latins. +</pre> + <p> + The restoration of the Western empire by Charlemagne was speedily followed + by the separation of the Greek and Latin churches. <a href="#linkBnote-1" + name="linkBnoteref-1" id="linkBnoteref-1">1</a> A religious and national + animosity still divides the two largest communions of the Christian world; + and the schism of Constantinople, + </p> + <p> + <b> by alienating her most useful allies, and provoking her most dangerous + </b> + </p> + <p> + enemies, has precipitated the decline and fall of the Roman empire in the + East. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-1" id="linkBnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ In the successive + centuries, from the ixth to the xviiith, Mosheim traces the schism of the + Greeks with learning, clearness, and impartiality; the <i>filioque</i> + (Institut. Hist. Ecclés. p. 277,) Leo III. p. 303 Photius, p. 307, 308. + Michael Cerularius, p. 370, 371, &c.] + </p> + <p> + In the course of the present History, the aversion of the Greeks for the + Latins has been often visible and conspicuous. It was originally derived + from the disdain of servitude, inflamed, after the time of Constantine, by + the pride of equality or dominion; and finally exasperated by the + preference which their rebellious subjects had given to the alliance of + the Franks. In every age the Greeks were proud of their superiority in + profane and religious knowledge: they had first received the light of + Christianity; they had pronounced the decrees of the seven general + councils; they alone possessed the language of Scripture and philosophy; + nor should the Barbarians, immersed in the darkness of the West, <a + href="#linkBnote-2" name="linkBnoteref-2" id="linkBnoteref-2">2</a> + presume to argue on the high and mysterious questions of theological + science. Those Barbarians despised in then turn the restless and subtile + levity of the Orientals, the authors of every heresy; and blessed their + own simplicity, which was content to hold the tradition of the apostolic + church. Yet in the seventh century, the synods of Spain, and afterwards of + France, improved or corrupted the Nicene creed, on the mysterious subject + of the third person of the Trinity. <a href="#linkBnote-3" + name="linkBnoteref-3" id="linkBnoteref-3">3</a> In the long controversies + of the East, the nature and generation of the Christ had been scrupulously + defined; and the well-known relation of father and son seemed to convey a + faint image to the human mind. The idea of birth was less analogous to the + Holy Spirit, who, instead of a divine gift or attribute, was considered by + the Catholics as a substance, a person, a god; he was not begotten, but in + the orthodox style he <i>proceeded</i>. Did he proceed from the Father + alone, perhaps <i>by</i> the Son? or from the Father <i>and</i> the Son? + The first of these opinions was asserted by the Greeks, the second by the + Latins; and the addition to the Nicene creed of the word <i>filioque</i>, + kindled the flame of discord between the Oriental and the Gallic churches. + In the origin of the disputes the Roman pontiffs affected a character of + neutrality and moderation: <a href="#linkBnote-4" name="linkBnoteref-4" + id="linkBnoteref-4">4</a> they condemned the innovation, but they + acquiesced in the sentiment, of their Transalpine brethren: they seemed + desirous of casting a veil of silence and charity over the superfluous + research; and in the correspondence of Charlemagne and Leo the Third, the + pope assumes the liberality of a statesman, and the prince descends to the + passions and prejudices of a priest. <a href="#linkBnote-5" + name="linkBnoteref-5" id="linkBnoteref-5">5</a> But the orthodoxy of Rome + spontaneously obeyed the impulse of the temporal policy; and the <i>filioque</i>, + which Leo wished to erase, was transcribed in the symbol and chanted in + the liturgy of the Vatican. The Nicene and Athanasian creeds are held as + the Catholic faith, without which none can be saved; and both Papists and + Protestants must now sustain and return the anathemas of the Greeks, who + deny the procession of the Holy Ghost from the Son, as well as from the + Father. Such articles of faith are not susceptible of treaty; but the + rules of discipline will vary in remote and independent churches; and the + reason, even of divines, might allow, that the difference is inevitable + and harmless. The craft or superstition of Rome has imposed on her priests + and deacons the rigid obligation of celibacy; among the Greeks it is + confined to the bishops; the loss is compensated by dignity or annihilated + by age; and the parochial clergy, the papas, enjoy the conjugal society of + the wives whom they have married before their entrance into holy orders. A + question concerning the <i>Azyms</i> was fiercely debated in the eleventh + century, and the essence of the Eucharist was supposed in the East and + West to depend on the use of leavened or unleavened bread. Shall I mention + in a serious history the furious reproaches that were urged against the + Latins, who for a long while remained on the defensive? They neglected to + abstain, according to the apostolical decree, from things strangled, and + from blood: they fasted (a Jewish observance!) on the Saturday of each + week: during the first week of Lent they permitted the use of milk and + cheese; <a href="#linkBnote-6" name="linkBnoteref-6" id="linkBnoteref-6">6</a> + their infirm monks were indulged in the taste of flesh; and animal grease + was substituted for the want of vegetable oil: the holy chrism or unction + in baptism was reserved to the episcopal order: the bishops, as the + bridegrooms of their churches, were decorated with rings; their priests + shaved their faces, and baptized by a single immersion. Such were the + crimes which provoked the zeal of the patriarchs of Constantinople; and + which were justified with equal zeal by the doctors of the Latin church. + <a href="#linkBnote-7" name="linkBnoteref-7" id="linkBnoteref-7">7</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-2" id="linkBnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ ''AndreV dussebeiV kai + apotropaioi, andreV ek sktouV anadunteV, thV gar 'Esperiou moiraV uphrcon + gennhmata, (Phot. Epist. p. 47, edit. Montacut.) The Oriental patriarch + continues to apply the images of thunder, earthquake, hail, wild boar, + precursors of Antichrist, &c., &c.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-3" id="linkBnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ The mysterious subject of + the procession of the Holy Ghost is discussed in the historical, + theological, and controversial sense, or nonsense, by the Jesuit Petavius. + (Dogmata Theologica, tom. ii. l. vii. p. 362—440.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-4" id="linkBnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ Before the shrine of St. + Peter he placed two shields of the weight of 94 1/2 pounds of pure silver; + on which he inscribed the text of both creeds, (utroque symbolo,) pro + amore et <i>cautelâ</i> orthodoxæ fidei, (Anastas. in Leon. III. in + Muratori, tom. iii. pars. i. p. 208.) His language most clearly proves, + that neither the <i>filioque</i>, nor the Athanasian creed were received + at Rome about the year 830.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-5" id="linkBnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ The Missi of Charlemagne + pressed him to declare, that all who rejected the <i>filioque</i>, or at + least the doctrine, must be damned. All, replies the pope, are not capable + of reaching the altiora mysteria qui potuerit, et non voluerit, salvus + esse non potest, (Collect. Concil. tom. ix. p. 277—286.) The <i>potuerit</i> + would leave a large loophole of salvation!] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-6" id="linkBnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ In France, after some + harsher laws, the ecclesiastical discipline is now relaxed: milk, cheese, + and butter, are become a perpetual, and eggs an annual, indulgence in + Lent, (Vie privée des François, tom. ii. p. 27—38.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-7" id="linkBnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ The original monuments of + the schism, of the charges of the Greeks against the Latins, are deposited + in the epistles of Photius, (Epist Encyclica, ii. p. 47—61,) and of + Michael Cerularius, (Canisii Antiq. Lectiones, tom. iii. p. i. p. 281—324, + edit. Basnage, with the prolix answer of Cardinal Humbert.)] + </p> + <p> + Bigotry and national aversion are powerful magnifiers of every object of + dispute; but the immediate cause of the schism of the Greeks may be traced + in the emulation of the leading prelates, who maintained the supremacy of + the old metropolis superior to all, and of the reigning capital, inferior + to none, in the Christian world. About the middle of the ninth century, + Photius, <a href="#linkBnote-8" name="linkBnoteref-8" id="linkBnoteref-8">8</a> + an ambitious layman, the captain of the guards and principal secretary, + was promoted by merit and favor to the more desirable office of patriarch + of Constantinople. In science, even ecclesiastical science, he surpassed + the clergy of the age; and the purity of his morals has never been + impeached: but his ordination was hasty, his rise was irregular; and + Ignatius, his abdicated predecessor, was yet supported by the public + compassion and the obstinacy of his adherents. They appealed to the + tribunal of Nicholas the First, one of the proudest and most aspiring of + the Roman pontiffs, who embraced the welcome opportunity of judging and + condemning his rival of the East. Their quarrel was embittered by a + conflict of jurisdiction over the king and nation of the Bulgarians; nor + was their recent conversion to Christianity of much avail to either + prelate, unless he could number the proselytes among the subjects of his + power. With the aid of his court the Greek patriarch was victorious; but + in the furious contest he deposed in his turn the successor of St. Peter, + and involved the Latin church in the reproach of heresy and schism. + Photius sacrificed the peace of the world to a short and precarious reign: + he fell with his patron, the Cæsar Bardas; and Basil the Macedonian + performed an act of justice in the restoration of Ignatius, whose age and + dignity had not been sufficiently respected. From his monastery, or + prison, Photius solicited the favor of the emperor by pathetic complaints + and artful flattery; and the eyes of his rival were scarcely closed, when + he was again restored to the throne of Constantinople. After the death of + Basil he experienced the vicissitudes of courts and the ingratitude of a + royal pupil: the patriarch was again deposed, and in his last solitary + hours he might regret the freedom of a secular and studious life. In each + revolution, the breath, the nod, of the sovereign had been accepted by a + submissive clergy; and a synod of three hundred bishops was always + prepared to hail the triumph, or to stigmatize the fall, of the holy, or + the execrable, Photius. <a href="#linkBnote-9" name="linkBnoteref-9" + id="linkBnoteref-9">9</a> By a delusive promise of succor or reward, the + popes were tempted to countenance these various proceedings; and the + synods of Constantinople were ratified by their epistles or legates. But + the court and the people, Ignatius and Photius, were equally adverse to + their claims; their ministers were insulted or imprisoned; the procession + of the Holy Ghost was forgotten; Bulgaria was forever annexed to the + Byzantine throne; and the schism was prolonged by their rigid censure of + all the multiplied ordinations of an irregular patriarch. The darkness and + corruption of the tenth century suspended the intercourse, without + reconciling the minds, of the two nations. But when the Norman sword + restored the churches of Apulia to the jurisdiction of Rome, the departing + flock was warned, by a petulant epistle of the Greek patriarch, to avoid + and abhor the errors of the Latins. The rising majesty of Rome could no + longer brook the insolence of a rebel; and Michael Cerularius was + excommunicated in the heart of Constantinople by the pope's legates. + Shaking the dust from their feet, they deposited on the altar of St. + Sophia a direful anathema, <a href="#linkBnote-10" name="linkBnoteref-10" + id="linkBnoteref-10">10</a> which enumerates the seven mortal heresies of + the Greeks, and devotes the guilty teachers, and their unhappy sectaries, + to the eternal society of the devil and his angels. According to the + emergencies of the church and state, a friendly correspondence was some + times resumed; the language of charity and concord was sometimes affected; + but the Greeks have never recanted their errors; the popes have never + repealed their sentence; and from this thunderbolt we may date the + consummation of the schism. It was enlarged by each ambitious step of the + Roman pontiffs: the emperors blushed and trembled at the ignominious fate + of their royal brethren of Germany; and the people were scandalized by the + temporal power and military life of the Latin clergy. <a + href="#linkBnote-11" name="linkBnoteref-11" id="linkBnoteref-11">11</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-8" id="linkBnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ The xth volume of the + Venice edition of the Councils contains all the acts of the synods, and + history of Photius: they are abridged, with a faint tinge of prejudice or + prudence, by Dupin and Fleury.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-9" id="linkBnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ The synod of + Constantinople, held in the year 869, is the viiith of the general + councils, the last assembly of the East which is recognized by the Roman + church. She rejects the synods of Constantinople of the years 867 and 879, + which were, however, equally numerous and noisy; but they were favorable + to Photius.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-10" id="linkBnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ See this anathema in the + Councils, tom. xi. p. 1457—1460.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-11" id="linkBnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ Anna Comnena (Alexiad, + l. i. p. 31—33) represents the abhorrence, not only of the church, + but of the palace, for Gregory VII., the popes and the Latin communion. + The style of Cinnamus and Nicetas is still more vehement. Yet how calm is + the voice of history compared with that of polemics!] + </p> + <p> + The aversion of the Greeks and Latins was nourished and manifested in the + three first expeditions to the Holy Land. Alexius Comnenus contrived the + absence at least of the formidable pilgrims: his successors, Manuel and + Isaac Angelus, conspired with the Moslems for the ruin of the greatest + princes of the Franks; and their crooked and malignant policy was seconded + by the active and voluntary obedience of every order of their subjects. Of + this hostile temper, a large portion may doubtless be ascribed to the + difference of language, dress, and manners, which severs and alienates the + nations of the globe. The pride, as well as the prudence, of the sovereign + was deeply wounded by the intrusion of foreign armies, that claimed a + right of traversing his dominions, and passing under the walls of his + capital: his subjects were insulted and plundered by the rude strangers of + the West: and the hatred of the pusillanimous Greeks was sharpened by + secret envy of the bold and pious enterprises of the Franks. But these + profane causes of national enmity were fortified and inflamed by the venom + of religious zeal. Instead of a kind embrace, a hospitable reception from + their Christian brethren of the East, every tongue was taught to repeat + the names of schismatic and heretic, more odious to an orthodox ear than + those of pagan and infidel: instead of being loved for the general + conformity of faith and worship, they were abhorred for some rules of + discipline, some questions of theology, in which themselves or their + teachers might differ from the Oriental church. In the crusade of Louis + the Seventh, the Greek clergy washed and purified the altars which had + been defiled by the sacrifice of a French priest. The companions of + Frederic Barbarossa deplore the injuries which they endured, both in word + and deed, from the peculiar rancor of the bishops and monks. Their prayers + and sermons excited the people against the impious Barbarians; and the + patriarch is accused of declaring, that the faithful might obtain the + redemption of all their sins by the extirpation of the schismatics. <a + href="#linkBnote-12" name="linkBnoteref-12" id="linkBnoteref-12">12</a> An + enthusiast, named Dorotheus, alarmed the fears, and restored the + confidence, of the emperor, by a prophetic assurance, that the German + heretic, after assaulting the gate of Blachernes, would be made a signal + example of the divine vengeance. The passage of these mighty armies were + rare and perilous events; but the crusades introduced a frequent and + familiar intercourse between the two nations, which enlarged their + knowledge without abating their prejudices. The wealth and luxury of + Constantinople demanded the productions of every climate; these imports + were balanced by the art and labor of her numerous inhabitants; her + situation invites the commerce of the world; and, in every period of her + existence, that commerce has been in the hands of foreigners. After the + decline of Amalphi, the Venetians, Pisans, and Genoese, introduced their + factories and settlements into the capital of the empire: their services + were rewarded with honors and immunities; they acquired the possession of + lands and houses; their families were multiplied by marriages with the + natives; and, after the toleration of a Mahometan mosque, it was + impossible to interdict the churches of the Roman rite. <a + href="#linkBnote-13" name="linkBnoteref-13" id="linkBnoteref-13">13</a> + The two wives of Manuel Comnenus <a href="#linkBnote-14" + name="linkBnoteref-14" id="linkBnoteref-14">14</a> were of the race of the + Franks: the first, a sister-in-law of the emperor Conrad; the second, a + daughter of the prince of Antioch: he obtained for his son Alexius a + daughter of Philip Augustus, king of France; and he bestowed his own + daughter on a marquis of Montferrat, who was educated and dignified in the + palace of Constantinople. The Greek encountered the arms, and aspired to + the empire, of the West: he esteemed the valor, and trusted the fidelity, + of the Franks; <a href="#linkBnote-15" name="linkBnoteref-15" + id="linkBnoteref-15">15</a> their military talents were unfitly + recompensed by the lucrative offices of judges and treasures; the policy + of Manuel had solicited the alliance of the pope; and the popular voice + accused him of a partial bias to the nation and religion of the Latins. <a + href="#linkBnote-16" name="linkBnoteref-16" id="linkBnoteref-16">16</a> + During his reign, and that of his successor Alexius, they were exposed at + Constantinople to the reproach of foreigners, heretics, and favorites; and + this triple guilt was severely expiated in the tumult, which announced the + return and elevation of Andronicus. <a href="#linkBnote-17" + name="linkBnoteref-17" id="linkBnoteref-17">17</a> The people rose in + arms: from the Asiatic shore the tyrant despatched his troops and galleys + to assist the national revenge; and the hopeless resistance of the + strangers served only to justify the rage, and sharpen the daggers, of the + assassins. Neither age, nor sex, nor the ties of friendship or kindred, + could save the victims of national hatred, and avarice, and religious + zeal; the Latins were slaughtered in their houses and in the streets; + their quarter was reduced to ashes; the clergy were burnt in their + churches, and the sick in their hospitals; and some estimate may be formed + of the slain from the clemency which sold above four thousand Christians + in perpetual slavery to the Turks. The priests and monks were the loudest + and most active in the destruction of the schismatics; and they chanted a + thanksgiving to the Lord, when the head of a Roman cardinal, the pope's + legate, was severed from his body, fastened to the tail of a dog, and + dragged, with savage mockery, through the city. The more diligent of the + strangers had retreated, on the first alarm, to their vessels, and escaped + through the Hellespont from the scene of blood. In their flight, they + burnt and ravaged two hundred miles of the sea-coast; inflicted a severe + revenge on the guiltless subjects of the empire; marked the priests and + monks as their peculiar enemies; and compensated, by the accumulation of + plunder, the loss of their property and friends. On their return, they + exposed to Italy and Europe the wealth and weakness, the perfidy and + malice, of the Greeks, whose vices were painted as the genuine characters + of heresy and schism. The scruples of the first crusaders had neglected + the fairest opportunities of securing, by the possession of + Constantinople, the way to the Holy Land: domestic revolution invited, and + almost compelled, the French and Venetians to achieve the conquest of the + Roman empire of the East. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-12" id="linkBnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ His anonymous historian + (de Expedit. Asiat. Fred. I. in Canisii Lection. Antiq. tom. iii. pars ii. + p. 511, edit. Basnage) mentions the sermons of the Greek patriarch, + quomodo Græcis injunxerat in remissionem peccatorum peregrinos occidere et + delere de terra. Tagino observes, (in Scriptores Freher. tom. i. p. 409, + edit. Struv.,) Græci hæreticos nos appellant: clerici et monachi dictis et + factis persequuntur. We may add the declaration of the emperor Baldwin + fifteen years afterwards: Hæc est (<i>gens</i>) quæ Latinos omnes non + hominum nomine, sed canum dignabatur; quorum sanguinem effundere penè + inter merita reputabant, (Gesta Innocent. III., c. 92, in Muratori, + Script. Rerum Italicarum, tom. iii. pars i. p. 536.) There may be some + exaggeration, but it was as effectual for the action and reaction of + hatred.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-13" id="linkBnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ See Anna Comnena, + (Alexiad, l. vi. p. 161, 162,) and a remarkable passage of Nicetas, (in + Manuel, l. v. c. 9,) who observes of the Venetians, kata smhnh kai + jratriaV thn Kwnstantinou polin thV oikeiaV hllaxanto, &c.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-14" id="linkBnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducange, Fam. Byzant. p. + 186, 187.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-15" id="linkBnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas in Manuel. l. + vii. c. 2. Regnante enim (Manuele).... apud eum tantam Latinus populus + repererat gratiam ut neglectis Græculis suis tanquam viris mollibus et + effminatis,.... solis Latinis grandia committeret negotia.... erga eos + profusâ liberalitate abundabat.... ex omni orbe ad eum tanquam ad + benefactorem nobiles et ignobiles concurrebant. Willelm. Tyr. xxii. c. + 10.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-16" id="linkBnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ The suspicions of the + Greeks would have been confirmed, if they had seen the political epistles + of Manuel to Pope Alexander III., the enemy of his enemy Frederic I., in + which the emperor declares his wish of uniting the Greeks and Latins as + one flock under one shepherd, &c (See Fleury, Hist. Ecclés. tom. xv. + p. 187, 213, 243.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-17" id="linkBnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Greek and Latin + narratives in Nicetas (in Alexio Comneno, c. 10) and William of Tyre, (l. + xxii. c. 10, 11, 12, 13;) the first soft and concise, the second loud, + copious, and tragical.] + </p> + <p> + In the series of the Byzantine princes, I have exhibited the hypocrisy and + ambition, the tyranny and fall, of Andronicus, the last male of the + Comnenian family who reigned at Constantinople. The revolution, which cast + him headlong from the throne, saved and exalted Isaac Angelus, <a + href="#linkBnote-18" name="linkBnoteref-18" id="linkBnoteref-18">18</a> + who descended by the females from the same Imperial dynasty. The successor + of a second Nero might have found it an easy task to deserve the esteem + and affection of his subjects; they sometimes had reason to regret the + administration of Andronicus. The sound and vigorous mind of the tyrant + was capable of discerning the connection between his own and the public + interest; and while he was feared by all who could inspire him with fear, + the unsuspected people, and the remote provinces, might bless the + inexorable justice of their master. But his successor was vain and jealous + of the supreme power, which he wanted courage and abilities to exercise: + his vices were pernicious, his virtues (if he possessed any virtues) were + useless, to mankind; and the Greeks, who imputed their calamities to his + negligence, denied him the merit of any transient or accidental benefits + of the times. Isaac slept on the throne, and was awakened only by the + sound of pleasure: his vacant hours were amused by comedians and buffoons, + and even to these buffoons the emperor was an object of contempt: his + feasts and buildings exceeded the examples of royal luxury: the number of + his eunuchs and domestics amounted to twenty thousand; and a daily sum of + four thousand pounds of silver would swell to four millions sterling the + annual expense of his household and table. His poverty was relieved by + oppression; and the public discontent was inflamed by equal abuses in the + collection, and the application, of the revenue. While the Greeks numbered + the days of their servitude, a flattering prophet, whom he rewarded with + the dignity of patriarch, assured him of a long and victorious reign of + thirty-two years; during which he should extend his sway to Mount Libanus, + and his conquests beyond the Euphrates. But his only step towards the + accomplishment of the prediction was a splendid and scandalous embassy to + Saladin, <a href="#linkBnote-19" name="linkBnoteref-19" + id="linkBnoteref-19">19</a> to demand the restitution of the holy + sepulchre, and to propose an offensive and defensive league with the enemy + of the Christian name. In these unworthy hands, of Isaac and his brother, + the remains of the Greek empire crumbled into dust. The Island of Cyprus, + whose name excites the ideas of elegance and pleasure, was usurped by his + namesake, a Comnenian prince; and by a strange concatenation of events, + the sword of our English Richard bestowed that kingdom on the house of + Lusignan, a rich compensation for the loss of Jerusalem. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-18" id="linkBnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ The history of the reign + of Isaac Angelus is composed, in three books, by the senator Nicetas, (p. + 228—290;) and his offices of logothete, or principal secretary, and + judge of the veil or palace, could not bribe the impartiality of the + historian. He wrote, it is true, after the fall and death of his + benefactor.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-19" id="linkBnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ See Bohadin, Vit. + Saladin. p. 129—131, 226, vers. Schultens. The ambassador of Isaac + was equally versed in the Greek, French, and Arabic languages; a rare + instance in those times. His embassies were received with honor, dismissed + without effect, and reported with scandal in the West.] + </p> + <p> + The honor of the monarchy and the safety of the capital were deeply + wounded by the revolt of the Bulgarians and Walachians. Since the victory + of the second Basil, they had supported, above a hundred and seventy + years, the loose dominion of the Byzantine princes; but no effectual + measures had been adopted to impose the yoke of laws and manners on these + savage tribes. By the command of Isaac, their sole means of subsistence, + their flocks and herds, were driven away, to contribute towards the pomp + of the royal nuptials; and their fierce warriors were exasperated by the + denial of equal rank and pay in the military service. Peter and Asan, two + powerful chiefs, of the race of the ancient kings, <a href="#linkBnote-20" + name="linkBnoteref-20" id="linkBnoteref-20">20</a> asserted their own + rights and the national freedom; their dæmoniac impostors proclaimed to + the crowd, that their glorious patron St. Demetrius had forever deserted + the cause of the Greeks; and the conflagration spread from the banks of + the Danube to the hills of Macedonia and Thrace. After some faint efforts, + Isaac Angelus and his brother acquiesced in their independence; and the + Imperial troops were soon discouraged by the bones of their + fellow-soldiers, that were scattered along the passes of Mount Hæmus. By + the arms and policy of John or Joannices, the second kingdom of Bulgaria + was firmly established. The subtle Barbarian sent an embassy to Innocent + the Third, to acknowledge himself a genuine son of Rome in descent and + religion, <a href="#linkBnote-21" name="linkBnoteref-21" + id="linkBnoteref-21">21</a> and humbly received from the pope the license + of coining money, the royal title, and a Latin archbishop or patriarch. + The Vatican exulted in the spiritual conquest of Bulgaria, the first + object of the schism; and if the Greeks could have preserved the + prerogatives of the church, they would gladly have resigned the rights of + the monarchy. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-20" id="linkBnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducange, Familiæ, + Dalmaticæ, p. 318, 319, 320. The original correspondence of the Bulgarian + king and the Roman pontiff is inscribed in the Gesta Innocent. III. c. 66—82, + p. 513—525.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-21" id="linkBnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ The pope acknowledges + his pedigree, a nobili urbis Romæ prosapiâ genitores tui originem + traxerunt. This tradition, and the strong resemblance of the Latin and + Walachian idioms, is explained by M. D'Anville, (Etats de l'Europe, p. 258—262.) + The Italian colonies of the Dacia of Trajan were swept away by the tide of + emigration from the Danube to the Volga, and brought back by another wave + from the Volga to the Danube. Possible, but strange!] + </p> + <p> + The Bulgarians were malicious enough to pray for the long life of Isaac + Angelus, the surest pledge of their freedom and prosperity. Yet their + chiefs could involve in the same indiscriminate contempt the family and + nation of the emperor. "In all the Greeks," said Asan to his troops, "the + same climate, and character, and education, will be productive of the same + fruits. Behold my lance," continued the warrior, "and the long streamers + that float in the wind. They differ only in color; they are formed of the + same silk, and fashioned by the same workman; nor has the stripe that is + stained in purple any superior price or value above its fellows." <a + href="#linkBnote-22" name="linkBnoteref-22" id="linkBnoteref-22">22</a> + Several of these candidates for the purple successively rose and fell + under the empire of Isaac; a general, who had repelled the fleets of + Sicily, was driven to revolt and ruin by the ingratitude of the prince; + and his luxurious repose was disturbed by secret conspiracies and popular + insurrections. The emperor was saved by accident, or the merit of his + servants: he was at length oppressed by an ambitious brother, who, for the + hope of a precarious diadem, forgot the obligations of nature, of loyalty, + and of friendship. <a href="#linkBnote-23" name="linkBnoteref-23" + id="linkBnoteref-23">23</a> While Isaac in the Thracian valleys pursued + the idle and solitary pleasures of the chase, his brother, Alexius + Angelus, was invested with the purple, by the unanimous suffrage of the + camp; the capital and the clergy subscribed to their choice; and the + vanity of the new sovereign rejected the name of his fathers for the lofty + and royal appellation of the Comnenian race. On the despicable character + of Isaac I have exhausted the language of contempt, and can only add, + that, in a reign of eight years, the baser Alexius <a href="#linkBnote-24" + name="linkBnoteref-24" id="linkBnoteref-24">24</a> was supported by the + masculine vices of his wife Euphrosyne. The first intelligence of his fall + was conveyed to the late emperor by the hostile aspect and pursuit of the + guards, no longer his own: he fled before them above fifty miles, as far + as Stagyra, in Macedonia; but the fugitive, without an object or a + follower, was arrested, brought back to Constantinople, deprived of his + eyes, and confined in a lonesome tower, on a scanty allowance of bread and + water. At the moment of the revolution, his son Alexius, whom he educated + in the hope of empire, was twelve years of age. He was spared by the + usurper, and reduced to attend his triumph both in peace and war; but as + the army was encamped on the sea-shore, an Italian vessel facilitated the + escape of the royal youth; and, in the disguise of a common sailor, he + eluded the search of his enemies, passed the Hellespont, and found a + secure refuge in the Isle of Sicily. After saluting the threshold of the + apostles, and imploring the protection of Pope Innocent the Third, Alexius + accepted the kind invitation of his sister Irene, the wife of Philip of + Swabia, king of the Romans. But in his passage through Italy, he heard + that the flower of Western chivalry was assembled at Venice for the + deliverance of the Holy Land; and a ray of hope was kindled in his bosom, + that their invincible swords might be employed in his father's + restoration. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-22" id="linkBnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ This parable is in the + best savage style; but I wish the Walach had not introduced the classic + name of Mysians, the experiment of the magnet or loadstone, and the + passage of an old comic poet, (Nicetas in Alex. Comneno, l. i. p. 299, + 300.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-23" id="linkBnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ The Latins aggravate the + ingratitude of Alexius, by supposing that he had been released by his + brother Isaac from Turkish captivity This pathetic tale had doubtless been + repeated at Venice and Zara but I do not readily discover its grounds in + the Greek historians.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-24" id="linkBnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ See the reign of Alexius + Angelus, or Comnenus, in the three books of Nicetas, p. 291—352.] + </p> + <p> + About ten or twelve years after the loss of Jerusalem, the nobles of + France were again summoned to the holy war by the voice of a third + prophet, less extravagant, perhaps, than Peter the hermit, but far below + St. Bernard in the merit of an orator and a statesman. An illiterate + priest of the neighborhood of Paris, Fulk of Neuilly, <a + href="#linkBnote-25" name="linkBnoteref-25" id="linkBnoteref-25">25</a> + forsook his parochial duty, to assume the more flattering character of a + popular and itinerant missionary. The fame of his sanctity and miracles + was spread over the land; he declaimed, with severity and vehemence, + against the vices of the age; and his sermons, which he preached in the + streets of Paris, converted the robbers, the usurers, the prostitutes, and + even the doctors and scholars of the university. No sooner did Innocent + the Third ascend the chair of St. Peter, than he proclaimed in Italy, + Germany, and France, the obligation of a new crusade. <a + href="#linkBnote-26" name="linkBnoteref-26" id="linkBnoteref-26">26</a> + The eloquent pontiff described the ruin of Jerusalem, the triumph of the + Pagans, and the shame of Christendom; his liberality proposed the + redemption of sins, a plenary indulgence to all who should serve in + Palestine, either a year in person, or two years by a substitute; <a + href="#linkBnote-27" name="linkBnoteref-27" id="linkBnoteref-27">27</a> + and among his legates and orators who blew the sacred trumpet, Fulk of + Neuilly was the loudest and most successful. The situation of the + principal monarchs was averse to the pious summons. The emperor Frederic + the Second was a child; and his kingdom of Germany was disputed by the + rival houses of Brunswick and Swabia, the memorable factions of the + Guelphs and Ghibelines. Philip Augustus of France had performed, and could + not be persuaded to renew, the perilous vow; but as he was not less + ambitious of praise than of power, he cheerfully instituted a perpetual + fund for the defence of the Holy Land. Richard of England was satiated with + the glory and misfortunes of his first adventure; and he presumed to + deride the exhortations of Fulk of Neuilly, who was not abashed in the + presence of kings. "You advise me," said Plantagenet, "to dismiss my three + daughters, pride, avarice, and incontinence: I bequeath them to the most + deserving; my pride to the knights templars, my avarice to the monks of + Cisteaux, and my incontinence to the prelates." But the preacher was heard + and obeyed by the great vassals, the princes of the second order; and + Theobald, or Thibaut, count of Champagne, was the foremost in the holy + race. The valiant youth, at the age of twenty-two years, was encouraged by + the domestic examples of his father, who marched in the second crusade, + and of his elder brother, who had ended his days in Palestine with the + title of King of Jerusalem; two thousand two hundred knights owed service + and homage to his peerage; <a href="#linkBnote-28" name="linkBnoteref-28" + id="linkBnoteref-28">28</a> the nobles of Champagne excelled in all the + exercises of war; <a href="#linkBnote-29" name="linkBnoteref-29" + id="linkBnoteref-29">29</a> and, by his marriage with the heiress of + Navarre, Thibaut could draw a band of hardy Gascons from either side of + the Pyrenæan mountains. His companion in arms was Louis, count of Blois + and Chartres; like himself of regal lineage, for both the princes were + nephews, at the same time, of the kings of France and England. In a crowd + of prelates and barons, who imitated their zeal, I distinguish the birth + and merit of Matthew of Montmorency; the famous Simon of Montfort, the + scourge of the Albigeois; and a valiant noble, Jeffrey of Villehardouin, + <a href="#linkBnote-30" name="linkBnoteref-30" id="linkBnoteref-30">30</a> + marshal of Champagne, <a href="#linkBnote-31" name="linkBnoteref-31" + id="linkBnoteref-31">31</a> who has condescended, in the rude idiom of his + age and country, <a href="#linkBnote-32" name="linkBnoteref-32" + id="linkBnoteref-32">32</a> to write or dictate <a href="#linkBnote-33" + name="linkBnoteref-33" id="linkBnoteref-33">33</a> an original narrative + of the councils and actions in which he bore a memorable part. At the same + time, Baldwin, count of Flanders, who had married the sister of Thibaut, + assumed the cross at Bruges, with his brother Henry, and the principal + knights and citizens of that rich and industrious province. <a + href="#linkBnote-34" name="linkBnoteref-34" id="linkBnoteref-34">34</a> + The vow which the chiefs had pronounced in churches, they ratified in + tournaments; the operations of the war were debated in full and frequent + assemblies; and it was resolved to seek the deliverance of Palestine in + Egypt, a country, since Saladin's death, which was almost ruined by famine + and civil war. But the fate of so many royal armies displayed the toils + and perils of a land expedition; and if the Flemings dwelt along the + ocean, the French barons were destitute of ships and ignorant of + navigation. They embraced the wise resolution of choosing six deputies or + representatives, of whom Villehardouin was one, with a discretionary trust + to direct the motions, and to pledge the faith, of the whole confederacy. + The maritime states of Italy were alone possessed of the means of + transporting the holy warriors with their arms and horses; and the six + deputies proceeded to Venice, to solicit, on motives of piety or interest, + the aid of that powerful republic. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-25" id="linkBnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ See Fleury, Hist. + Ecclés. tom. xvi. p. 26, &c., and Villehardouin, No. 1, with the + observations of Ducange, which I always mean to quote with the original + text.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-26" id="linkBnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ The contemporary life of + Pope Innocent III., published by Baluze and Muratori, (Scriptores Rerum + Italicarum, tom. iii. pars i. p. 486—568), is most valuable for the + important and original documents which are inserted in the text. The bull + of the crusade may be read, c. 84, 85.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-27" id="linkBnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ Por-ce que cil pardon, + fut issi gran, si s'en esmeurent mult li cuers des genz, et mult s'en + croisierent, porce que li pardons ere si gran. Villehardouin, No. 1. Our + philosophers may refine on the causes of the crusades, but such were the + genuine feelings of a French knight.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-28" id="linkBnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ This number of fiefs (of + which 1800 owed liege homage) was enrolled in the church of St. Stephen at + Troyes, and attested A.D. 1213, by the marshal and butler of Champagne, + (Ducange, Observ. p. 254.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-29" id="linkBnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ Campania.... militiæ + privilegio singularius excellit.... in tyrociniis.... prolusione armorum, + &c., Duncage, p. 249, from the old Chronicle of Jerusalem, A.D. 1177—1199.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-30" id="linkBnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ The name of + Villehardouin was taken from a village and castle in the diocese of + Troyes, near the River Aube, between Bar and Arcis. The family was ancient + and noble; the elder branch of our historian existed after the year 1400, + the younger, which acquired the principality of Achaia, merged in the + house of Savoy, (Ducange, p. 235—245.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-31" id="linkBnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ This office was held by + his father and his descendants; but Ducange has not hunted it with his + usual sagacity. I find that, in the year 1356, it was in the family of + Conflans; but these provincial have been long since eclipsed by the + national marshals of France.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-32" id="linkBnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ This language, of which + I shall produce some specimens, is explained by Vigenere and Ducange, in a + version and glossary. The president Des Brosses (Méchanisme des Langues, + tom. ii. p. 83) gives it as the example of a language which has ceased to + be French, and is understood only by grammarians.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-33" id="linkBnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ His age, and his own + expression, moi qui ceste uvre <i>dicta</i>, (No. 62, &c.,) may + justify the suspicion (more probable than Mr. Wood's on Homer) that he + could neither read nor write. Yet Champagne may boast of the two first + historians, the noble authors of French prose, Villehardouin and + Joinville.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-34" id="linkBnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ The crusade and reigns + of the counts of Flanders, Baldwin and his brother Henry, are the subject + of a particular history by the Jesuit Doutremens, (Constantinopolis + Belgica; Turnaci, 1638, in 4to.,) which I have only seen with the eyes of + Ducange.] + </p> + <p> + In the invasion of Italy by Attila, I have mentioned <a + href="#linkBnote-35" name="linkBnoteref-35" id="linkBnoteref-35">35</a> + the flight of the Venetians from the fallen cities of the continent, and + their obscure shelter in the chain of islands that line the extremity of + the Adriatic Gulf. In the midst of the waters, free, indigent, laborious, + and inaccessible, they gradually coalesced into a republic: the first + foundations of Venice were laid in the Island of Rialto; and the annual + election of the twelve tribunes was superseded by the permanent office of + a duke or doge. On the verge of the two empires, the Venetians exult in + the belief of primitive and perpetual independence. <a href="#linkBnote-36" + name="linkBnoteref-36" id="linkBnoteref-36">36</a> Against the Latins, + their antique freedom has been asserted by the sword, and may be justified + by the pen. Charlemagne himself resigned all claims of sovereignty to the + islands of the Adriatic Gulf: his son Pepin was repulsed in the attacks of + the <i>lagunas</i> or canals, too deep for the cavalry, and too shallow + for the vessels; and in every age, under the German Cæsars, the lands of + the republic have been clearly distinguished from the kingdom of Italy. + But the inhabitants of Venice were considered by themselves, by strangers, + and by their sovereigns, as an inalienable portion of the Greek empire: <a + href="#linkBnote-37" name="linkBnoteref-37" id="linkBnoteref-37">37</a> in + the ninth and tenth centuries, the proofs of their subjection are numerous + and unquestionable; and the vain titles, the servile honors, of the + Byzantine court, so ambitiously solicited by their dukes, would have + degraded the magistrates of a free people. But the bands of this + dependence, which was never absolute or rigid, were imperceptibly relaxed + by the ambition of Venice and the weakness of Constantinople. Obedience + was softened into respect, privilege ripened into prerogative, and the + freedom of domestic government was fortified by the independence of + foreign dominion. The maritime cities of Istria and Dalmatia bowed to the + sovereigns of the Adriatic; and when they armed against the Normans in the + cause of Alexius, the emperor applied, not to the duty of his subjects, + but to the gratitude and generosity of his faithful allies. The sea was + their patrimony: <a href="#linkBnote-38" name="linkBnoteref-38" + id="linkBnoteref-38">38</a> the western parts of the Mediterranean, from + Tuscany to Gibraltar, were indeed abandoned to their rivals of Pisa and + Genoa; but the Venetians acquired an early and lucrative share of the + commerce of Greece and Egypt. Their riches increased with the increasing + demand of Europe; their manufactures of silk and glass, perhaps the + institution of their bank, are of high antiquity; and they enjoyed the + fruits of their industry in the magnificence of public and private life. + To assert her flag, to avenge her injuries, to protect the freedom of + navigation, the republic could launch and man a fleet of a hundred + galleys; and the Greeks, the Saracens, and the Normans, were encountered + by her naval arms. The Franks of Syria were assisted by the Venetians in + the reduction of the sea coast; but their zeal was neither blind nor + disinterested; and in the conquest of Tyre, they shared the sovereignty of + a city, the first seat of the commerce of the world. The policy of Venice + was marked by the avarice of a trading, and the insolence of a maritime, + power; yet her ambition was prudent: nor did she often forget that if + armed galleys were the effect and safeguard, merchant vessels were the + cause and supply, of her greatness. In her religion, she avoided the + schisms of the Greeks, without yielding a servile obedience to the Roman + pontiff; and a free intercourse with the infidels of every clime appears + to have allayed betimes the fever of superstition. Her primitive + government was a loose mixture of democracy and monarchy; the doge was + elected by the votes of the general assembly; as long as he was popular + and successful, he reigned with the pomp and authority of a prince; but in + the frequent revolutions of the state, he was deposed, or banished, or + slain, by the justice or injustice of the multitude. The twelfth century + produced the first rudiments of the wise and jealous aristocracy, which + has reduced the doge to a pageant, and the people to a cipher. <a + href="#linkBnote-39" name="linkBnoteref-39" id="linkBnoteref-39">39</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-35" id="linkBnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ History, &c., vol. + iii. p. 446, 447.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-36" id="linkBnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ The foundation and + independence of Venice, and Pepin's invasion, are discussed by Pagi + (Critica, tom. iii. A.D. 81, No. 4, &c.) and Beretti, (Dissert. + Chorograph. Italiæ Medii Ævi, in Muratori, Script. tom. x. p. 153.) The + two critics have a slight bias, the Frenchman adverse, the Italian + favorable, to the republic.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-37" id="linkBnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ When the son of + Charlemagne asserted his right of sovereignty, he was answered by the + loyal Venetians, oti hmeiV douloi Jelomen einai tou 'Rwmaiwn basilewV, + (Constantin. Porphyrogenit. de Administrat. Imperii, pars ii. c. 28, p. + 85;) and the report of the ixth establishes the fact of the xth century, + which is confirmed by the embassy of Liutprand of Cremona. The annual + tribute, which the emperor allows them to pay to the king of Italy, + alleviates, by doubling, their servitude; but the hateful word douloi must + be translated, as in the charter of 827, (Laugier, Hist. de Venice, tom. + i. p. 67, &c.,) by the softer appellation of <i>subditi</i>, or <i>fideles</i>.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-38" id="linkBnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ See the xxvth and xxxth + dissertations of the Antiquitates Medii Ævi of Muratori. From Anderson's + History of Commerce, I understand that the Venetians did not trade to + England before the year 1323. The most flourishing state of their wealth + and commerce, in the beginning of the xvth century, is agreeably described + by the Abbé Dubos, (Hist. de la Ligue de Cambray, tom. ii. p. 443—480.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-39" id="linkBnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ The Venetians have been + slow in writing and publishing their history. Their most ancient monuments + are, 1. The rude Chronicle (perhaps) of John Sagorninus, (Venezia, 1765, + in octavo,) which represents the state and manners of Venice in the year + 1008. 2. The larger history of the doge, (1342—1354,) Andrew + Dandolo, published for the first time in the xiith tom. of Muratori, A.D. + 1728. The History of Venice by the Abbé Laugier, (Paris, 1728,) is a work + of some merit, which I have chiefly used for the constitutional part. * + Note: It is scarcely necessary to mention the valuable work of Count Daru, + "History de Venise," of which I hear that an Italian translation has been + published, with Bnotes defensive of the ancient republic. I have not yet + seen this work.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkB2HCH0002" id="linkB2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LX: The Fourth Crusade.—Part II. + </h2> + <p> + When the six ambassadors of the French pilgrims arrived at Venice, they + were hospitably entertained in the palace of St. Mark, by the reigning + duke; his name was Henry Dandolo; <a href="#linkBnote-40" + name="linkBnoteref-40" id="linkBnoteref-40">40</a> and he shone in the + last period of human life as one of the most illustrious characters of the + times. Under the weight of years, and after the loss of his eyes, <a + href="#linkBnote-41" name="linkBnoteref-41" id="linkBnoteref-41">41</a> + Dandolo retained a sound understanding and a manly courage: the spirit of + a hero, ambitious to signalize his reign by some memorable exploits; and + the wisdom of a patriot, anxious to build his fame on the glory and + advantage of his country. He praised the bold enthusiasm and liberal + confidence of the barons and their deputies: in such a cause, and with + such associates, he should aspire, were he a private man, to terminate his + life; but he was the servant of the republic, and some delay was requisite + to consult, on this arduous business, the judgment of his colleagues. The + proposal of the French was first debated by the six <i>sages</i> who had + been recently appointed to control the administration of the doge: it was + next disclosed to the forty members of the council of state; and finally + communicated to the legislative assembly of four hundred and fifty + representatives, who were annually chosen in the six quarters of the city. + In peace and war, the doge was still the chief of the republic; his legal + authority was supported by the personal reputation of Dandolo: his + arguments of public interest were balanced and approved; and he was + authorized to inform the ambassadors of the following conditions of the + treaty. <a href="#linkBnote-42" name="linkBnoteref-42" id="linkBnoteref-42">42</a> + It was proposed that the crusaders should assemble at Venice, on the feast + of St. John of the ensuing year; that flat-bottomed vessels should be + prepared for four thousand five hundred horses, and nine thousand squires, + with a number of ships sufficient for the embarkation of four thousand + five hundred knights, and twenty thousand foot; that during a term of nine + months they should be supplied with provisions, and transported to + whatsoever coast the service of God and Christendom should require; and + that the republic should join the armament with a squadron of fifty + galleys. It was required, that the pilgrims should pay, before their + departure, a sum of eighty-five thousand marks of silver; and that all + conquests, by sea and land, should be equally divided between the + confederates. The terms were hard; but the emergency was pressing, and the + French barons were not less profuse of money than of blood. A general + assembly was convened to ratify the treaty: the stately chapel and place + of St. Mark were filled with ten thousand citizens; and the noble deputies + were taught a new lesson of humbling themselves before the majesty of the + people. "Illustrious Venetians," said the marshal of Champagne, "we are + sent by the greatest and most powerful barons of France to implore the aid + of the masters of the sea for the deliverance of Jerusalem. They have + enjoined us to fall prostrate at your feet; nor will we rise from the + ground till you have promised to avenge with us the injuries of Christ." + The eloquence of their words and tears, <a href="#linkBnote-43" + name="linkBnoteref-43" id="linkBnoteref-43">43</a> their martial aspect, + and suppliant attitude, were applauded by a universal shout; as it were, + says Jeffrey, by the sound of an earthquake. The venerable doge ascended + the pulpit to urge their request by those motives of honor and virtue, + which alone can be offered to a popular assembly: the treaty was + transcribed on parchment, attested with oaths and seals, mutually accepted + by the weeping and joyful representatives of France and Venice; and + despatched to Rome for the approbation of Pope Innocent the Third. Two + thousand marks were borrowed of the merchants for the first expenses of + the armament. Of the six deputies, two repassed the Alps to announce their + success, while their four companions made a fruitless trial of the zeal + and emulation of the republics of Genoa and Pisa. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-40" id="linkBnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ Henry Dandolo was + eighty-four at his election, (A.D. 1192,) and ninety-seven at his death, + (A.D. 1205.) See the Observations of Ducange sur Villehardouin, No. 204. + But this <i>extraordinary</i> longevity is not observed by the original + writers, nor does there exist another example of a hero near a hundred + years of age. Theophrastus might afford an instance of a writer of + ninety-nine; but instead of ennenhkonta, (Prom. ad Character.,)I am much + inclined to read ebdomhkonta, with his last editor Fischer, and the first + thoughts of Casaubon. It is scarcely possible that the powers of the mind + and body should support themselves till such a period of life.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-41" id="linkBnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ The modern Venetians + (Laugier, tom. ii. p. 119) accuse the emperor Manuel; but the calumny is + refuted by Villehardouin and the older writers, who suppose that Dandolo + lost his eyes by a wound, (No. 31, and Ducange.) * Note: The accounts + differ, both as to the extent and the cause of his blindness According to + Villehardouin and others, the sight was totally lost; according to the + Chronicle of Andrew Dandolo. (Murat. tom. xii. p. 322,) he was vise + debilis. See Wilken, vol. v. p. 143.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-42" id="linkBnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ See the original treaty + in the Chronicle of Andrew Dandolo, p. 323—326.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-43" id="linkBnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ A reader of + Villehardouin must observe the frequent tears of the marshal and his + brother knights. Sachiez que la ot mainte lerme plorée de pitié, (No. 17;) + mult plorant, (ibid.;) mainte lerme plorée, (No. 34;) si orent mult pitié + et plorerent mult durement, (No. 60;) i ot mainte lerme plorée de pitié, + (No. 202.) They weep on every occasion of grief, joy, or devotion.] + </p> + <p> + The execution of the treaty was still opposed by unforeseen difficulties + and delays. The marshal, on his return to Troyes, was embraced and + approved by Thibaut count of Champagne, who had been unanimously chosen + general of the confederates. But the health of that valiant youth already + declined, and soon became hopeless; and he deplored the untimely fate, + which condemned him to expire, not in a field of battle, but on a bed of + sickness. To his brave and numerous vassals, the dying prince distributed + his treasures: they swore in his presence to accomplish his vow and their + own; but some there were, says the marshal, who accepted his gifts and + forfeited their words. The more resolute champions of the cross held a + parliament at Soissons for the election of a new general; but such was the + incapacity, or jealousy, or reluctance, of the princes of France, that + none could be found both able and willing to assume the conduct of the + enterprise. They acquiesced in the choice of a stranger, of Boniface + marquis of Montferrat, descended of a race of heroes, and himself of + conspicuous fame in the wars and negotiations of the times; <a + href="#linkBnote-44" name="linkBnoteref-44" id="linkBnoteref-44">44</a> + nor could the piety or ambition of the Italian chief decline this + honorable invitation. After visiting the French court, where he was + received as a friend and kinsman, the marquis, in the church of Soissons, + was invested with the cross of a pilgrim and the staff of a general; and + immediately repassed the Alps, to prepare for the distant expedition of + the East. About the festival of the Pentecost he displayed his banner, and + marched towards Venice at the head of the Italians: he was preceded or + followed by the counts of Flanders and Blois, and the most respectable + barons of France; and their numbers were swelled by the pilgrims of + Germany, <a href="#linkBnote-45" name="linkBnoteref-45" + id="linkBnoteref-45">45</a> whose object and motives were similar to their + own. The Venetians had fulfilled, and even surpassed, their engagements: + stables were constructed for the horses, and barracks for the troops: the + magazines were abundantly replenished with forage and provisions; and the + fleet of transports, ships, and galleys, was ready to hoist sail as soon + as the republic had received the price of the freight and armament. But + that price far exceeded the wealth of the crusaders who were assembled at + Venice. The Flemings, whose obedience to their count was voluntary and + precarious, had embarked in their vessels for the long navigation of the + ocean and Mediterranean; and many of the French and Italians had preferred + a cheaper and more convenient passage from Marseilles and Apulia to the + Holy Land. Each pilgrim might complain, that after he had furnished his + own contribution, he was made responsible for the deficiency of his absent + brethren: the gold and silver plate of the chiefs, which they freely + delivered to the treasury of St. Marks, was a generous but inadequate + sacrifice; and after all their efforts, thirty-four thousand marks were + still wanting to complete the stipulated sum. The obstacle was removed by + the policy and patriotism of the doge, who proposed to the barons, that if + they would join their arms in reducing some revolted cities of Dalmatia, + he would expose his person in the holy war, and obtain from the republic a + long indulgence, till some wealthy conquest should afford the means of + satisfying the debt. After much scruple and hesitation, they chose rather + to accept the offer than to relinquish the enterprise; and the first + hostilities of the fleet and army were directed against Zara, <a + href="#linkBnote-46" name="linkBnoteref-46" id="linkBnoteref-46">46</a> a + strong city of the Sclavonian coast, which had renounced its allegiance to + Venice, and implored the protection of the king of Hungary. <a + href="#linkBnote-47" name="linkBnoteref-47" id="linkBnoteref-47">47</a> + The crusaders burst the chain or boom of the harbor; landed their horses, + troops, and military engines; and compelled the inhabitants, after a + defence of five days, to surrender at discretion: their lives were spared, + but the revolt was punished by the pillage of their houses and the + demolition of their walls. The season was far advanced; the French and + Venetians resolved to pass the winter in a secure harbor and plentiful + country; but their repose was disturbed by national and tumultuous + quarrels of the soldiers and mariners. The conquest of Zara had scattered + the seeds of discord and scandal: the arms of the allies had been stained + in their outset with the blood, not of infidels, but of Christians: the + king of Hungary and his new subjects were themselves enlisted under the + banner of the cross; and the scruples of the devout were magnified by the + fear of lassitude of the reluctant pilgrims. The pope had excommunicated + the false crusaders who had pillaged and massacred their brethren, <a + href="#linkBnote-48" name="linkBnoteref-48" id="linkBnoteref-48">48</a> + and only the marquis Boniface and Simon of Montfort <a + href="#linkBnote-481" name="linkBnoteref-481" id="linkBnoteref-481">481</a> + escaped these spiritual thunders; the one by his absence from the siege, + the other by his final departure from the camp. Innocent might absolve the + simple and submissive penitents of France; but he was provoked by the + stubborn reason of the Venetians, who refused to confess their guilt, to + accept their pardon, or to allow, in their temporal concerns, the + interposition of a priest. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-44" id="linkBnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ By a victory (A.D. 1191) + over the citizens of Asti, by a crusade to Palestine, and by an embassy + from the pope to the German princes, (Muratori, Annali d'Italia, tom. x. + p. 163, 202.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-45" id="linkBnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ See the crusade of the + Germans in the Historia C. P. of Gunther, (Canisii Antiq. Lect. tom. iv. + p. v.—viii.,) who celebrates the pilgrimage of his abbot Martin, one + of the preaching rivals of Fulk of Neuilly. His monastery, of the + Cistercian order, was situate in the diocese of Basil.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-46" id="linkBnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ Jadera, now Zara, was a + Roman colony, which acknowledged Augustus for its parent. It is now only + two miles round, and contains five or six thousand inhabitants; but the + fortifications are strong, and it is joined to the main land by a bridge. + See the travels of the two companions, Spon and Wheeler, (Voyage de + Dalmatie, de Grèce, &c., tom. i. p. 64—70. Journey into Greece, + p. 8—14;) the last of whom, by mistaking <i>Sestertia</i> for <i>Sestertii</i>, + values an arch with statues and columns at twelve pounds. If, in his time, + there were no trees near Zara, the cherry-trees were not yet planted which + produce our incomparable <i>marasquin</i>.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-47" id="linkBnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ Katona (Hist. Critica + Reg. Hungariæ, Stirpis Arpad. tom. iv. p. 536—558) collects all the + facts and testimonies most adverse to the conquerors of Zara.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-48" id="linkBnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ See the whole + transaction, and the sentiments of the pope, in the Epistles of Innocent + III. Gesta, c. 86, 87, 88.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-481" id="linkBnote-481"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 481 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-481">return</a>)<br /> [ Montfort protested + against the siege. Guido, the abbot of Vaux de Sernay, in the name of the + pope, interdicted the attack on a Christian city; and the immediate + surrender of the town was thus delayed for five days of fruitless + resistance. Wilken, vol. v. p. 167. See likewise, at length, the history + of the interdict issued by the pope. Ibid.—M.] + </p> + <p> + The assembly of such formidable powers by sea and land had revived the + hopes of young <a href="#linkBnote-49" name="linkBnoteref-49" + id="linkBnoteref-49">49</a> Alexius; and both at Venice and Zara, he + solicited the arms of the crusaders, for his own restoration and his + father's <a href="#linkBnote-50" name="linkBnoteref-50" + id="linkBnoteref-50">50</a> deliverance. The royal youth was recommended + by Philip king of Germany: his prayers and presence excited the compassion + of the camp; and his cause was embraced and pleaded by the marquis of + Montferrat and the doge of Venice. A double alliance, and the dignity of + Cæsar, had connected with the Imperial family the two elder brothers of + Boniface: <a href="#linkBnote-51" name="linkBnoteref-51" + id="linkBnoteref-51">51</a> he expected to derive a kingdom from the + important service; and the more generous ambition of Dandolo was eager to + secure the inestimable benefits of trade and dominion that might accrue to + his country. <a href="#linkBnote-52" name="linkBnoteref-52" + id="linkBnoteref-52">52</a> Their influence procured a favorable audience + for the ambassadors of Alexius; and if the magnitude of his offers excited + some suspicion, the motives and rewards which he displayed might justify + the delay and diversion of those forces which had been consecrated to the + deliverance of Jerusalem. He promised in his own and his father's name, + that as soon as they should be seated on the throne of Constantinople, + they would terminate the long schism of the Greeks, and submit themselves + and their people to the lawful supremacy of the Roman church. He engaged + to recompense the labors and merits of the crusaders, by the immediate + payment of two hundred thousand marks of silver; to accompany them in + person to Egypt; or, if it should be judged more advantageous, to + maintain, during a year, ten thousand men, and, during his life, five + hundred knights, for the service of the Holy Land. These tempting + conditions were accepted by the republic of Venice; and the eloquence of + the doge and marquis persuaded the counts of Flanders, Blois, and St. Pol, + with eight barons of France, to join in the glorious enterprise. A treaty + of offensive and defensive alliance was confirmed by their oaths and + seals; and each individual, according to his situation and character, was + swayed by the hope of public or private advantage; by the honor of + restoring an exiled monarch; or by the sincere and probable opinion, that + their efforts in Palestine would be fruitless and unavailing, and that the + acquisition of Constantinople must precede and prepare the recovery of + Jerusalem. But they were the chiefs or equals of a valiant band of freemen + and volunteers, who thought and acted for themselves: the soldiers and + clergy were divided; and, if a large majority subscribed to the alliance, + the numbers and arguments of the dissidents were strong and respectable. + <a href="#linkBnote-53" name="linkBnoteref-53" id="linkBnoteref-53">53</a> + The boldest hearts were appalled by the report of the naval power and + impregnable strength of Constantinople; and their apprehensions were + disguised to the world, and perhaps to themselves, by the more decent + objections of religion and duty. They alleged the sanctity of a vow, which + had drawn them from their families and homes to the rescue of the holy + sepulchre; nor should the dark and crooked counsels of human policy divert + them from a pursuit, the event of which was in the hands of the Almighty. + Their first offence, the attack of Zara, had been severely punished by the + reproach of their conscience and the censures of the pope; nor would they + again imbrue their hands in the blood of their fellow-Christians. The + apostle of Rome had pronounced; nor would they usurp the right of avenging + with the sword the schism of the Greeks and the doubtful usurpation of the + Byzantine monarch. On these principles or pretences, many pilgrims, the + most distinguished for their valor and piety, withdrew from the camp; and + their retreat was less pernicious than the open or secret opposition of a + discontented party, that labored, on every occasion, to separate the army + and disappoint the enterprise. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-49" id="linkBnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ A modern reader is + surprised to hear of the valet de Constantinople, as applied to young + Alexius, on account of his youth, like the <i>infants</i> of Spain, and + the <i>nobilissimus puer</i> of the Romans. The pages and <i>valets</i> of + the knights were as noble as themselves, (Villehardouin and Ducange, No. + 36.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-50" id="linkBnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ The emperor Isaac is + styled by Villehardouin, <i>Sursac</i>, (No. 35, &c.,) which may be + derived from the French <i>Sire</i>, or the Greek Kur (kurioV?) melted + into his proper name; the further corruptions of Tursac and Conserac will + instruct us what license may have been used in the old dynasties of + Assyria and Egypt.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-51" id="linkBnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ Reinier and Conrad: the + former married Maria, daughter of the emperor Manuel Comnenus; the latter + was the husband of Theodora Angela, sister of the emperors Isaac and + Alexius. Conrad abandoned the Greek court and princess for the glory of + defending Tyre against Saladin, (Ducange, Fam. Byzant. p. 187, 203.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-52" id="linkBnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas (in Alexio + Comneno, l. iii. c. 9) accuses the doge and Venetians as the first authors + of the war against Constantinople, and considers only as a kuma epi + kumati, the arrival and shameful offers of the royal exile. * Note: He + admits, however, that the Angeli had committed depredations on the + Venetian trade, and the emperor himself had refused the payment of part of + the stipulated compensation for the seizure of the Venetian merchandise by + the emperor Manuel. Nicetas, in loc.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-53" id="linkBnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ Villehardouin and + Gunther represent the sentiments of the two parties. The abbot Martin left + the army at Zara, proceeded to Palestine, was sent ambassador to + Constantinople, and became a reluctant witness of the second siege.] + </p> + <p> + Notwithstanding this defection, the departure of the fleet and army was + vigorously pressed by the Venetians, whose zeal for the service of the + royal youth concealed a just resentment to his nation and family. They + were mortified by the recent preference which had been given to Pisa, the + rival of their trade; they had a long arrear of debt and injury to + liquidate with the Byzantine court; and Dandolo might not discourage the + popular tale, that he had been deprived of his eyes by the emperor Manuel, + who perfidiously violated the sanctity of an ambassador. A similar + armament, for ages, had not rode the Adriatic: it was composed of one + hundred and twenty flat-bottomed vessels or <i>palanders</i> for the + horses; two hundred and forty transports filled with men and arms; seventy + store-ships laden with provisions; and fifty stout galleys, well prepared + for the encounter of an enemy. <a href="#linkBnote-54" + name="linkBnoteref-54" id="linkBnoteref-54">54</a> While the wind was + favorable, the sky serene, and the water smooth, every eye was fixed with + wonder and delight on the scene of military and naval pomp which + overspread the sea. <a href="#linkBnote-541" name="linkBnoteref-541" + id="linkBnoteref-541">541</a> The shields of the knights and squires, at + once an ornament and a defence, were arranged on either side of the ships; + the banners of the nations and families were displayed from the stern; our + modern artillery was supplied by three hundred engines for casting stones + and darts: the fatigues of the way were cheered with the sound of music; + and the spirits of the adventurers were raised by the mutual assurance, + that forty thousand Christian heroes were equal to the conquest of the + world. <a href="#linkBnote-55" name="linkBnoteref-55" id="linkBnoteref-55">55</a> + In the navigation <a href="#linkBnote-56" name="linkBnoteref-56" + id="linkBnoteref-56">56</a> from Venice and Zara, the fleet was + successfully steered by the skill and experience of the Venetian pilots: + at Durazzo, the confederates first landed on the territories of the Greek + empire: the Isle of Corfu afforded a station and repose; they doubled, + without accident, the perilous cape of Malea, the southern point of + Peloponnesus or the Morea; made a descent in the islands of Negropont and + Andros; and cast anchor at Abydus on the Asiatic side of the Hellespont. + These preludes of conquest were easy and bloodless: the Greeks of the + provinces, without patriotism or courage, were crushed by an irresistible + force: the presence of the lawful heir might justify their obedience; and + it was rewarded by the modesty and discipline of the Latins. As they + penetrated through the Hellespont, the magnitude of their navy was + compressed in a narrow channel, and the face of the waters was darkened + with innumerable sails. They again expanded in the basin of the Propontis, + and traversed that placid sea, till they approached the European shore, at + the abbey of St. Stephen, three leagues to the west of Constantinople. The + prudent doge dissuaded them from dispersing themselves in a populous and + hostile land; and, as their stock of provisions was reduced, it was + resolved, in the season of harvest, to replenish their store-ships in the + fertile islands of the Propontis. With this resolution, they directed + their course: but a strong gale, and their own impatience, drove them to + the eastward; and so near did they run to the shore and the city, that + some volleys of stones and darts were exchanged between the ships and the + rampart. As they passed along, they gazed with admiration on the capital + of the East, or, as it should seem, of the earth; rising from her seven + hills, and towering over the continents of Europe and Asia. The swelling + domes and lofty spires of five hundred palaces and churches were gilded by + the sun and reflected in the waters: the walls were crowded with soldiers + and spectators, whose numbers they beheld, of whose temper they were + ignorant; and each heart was chilled by the reflection, that, since the + beginning of the world, such an enterprise had never been undertaken by + such a handful of warriors. But the momentary apprehension was dispelled + by hope and valor; and every man, says the marshal of Champagne, glanced + his eye on the sword or lance which he must speedily use in the glorious + conflict. <a href="#linkBnote-57" name="linkBnoteref-57" + id="linkBnoteref-57">57</a> The Latins cast anchor before Chalcedon; the + mariners only were left in the vessels: the soldiers, horses, and arms, + were safely landed; and, in the luxury of an Imperial palace, the barons + tasted the first fruits of their success. On the third day, the fleet and + army moved towards Scutari, the Asiatic suburb of Constantinople: a + detachment of five hundred Greek horse was surprised and defeated by + fourscore French knights; and in a halt of nine days, the camp was + plentifully supplied with forage and provisions. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-54" id="linkBnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ The birth and dignity of + Andrew Dandolo gave him the motive and the means of searching in the + archives of Venice the memorable story of his ancestor. His brevity seems + to accuse the copious and more recent narratives of Sanudo, (in Muratori, + Script. Rerum Italicarum, tom. xxii.,) Blondus, Sabellicus, and + Rhamnusius.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-541" id="linkBnote-541"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 541 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-541">return</a>)<br /> [ This description + rather belongs to the first setting sail of the expedition from Venice, + before the siege of Zara. The armament did not return to Venice.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-55" id="linkBnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ Villehardouin, No. 62. + His feelings and expressions are original: he often weeps, but he rejoices + in the glories and perils of war with a spirit unknown to a sedentary + writer.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-56" id="linkBnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ In this voyage, almost + all the geographical names are corrupted by the Latins. The modern + appellation of Chalcis, and all Euba, is derived from its <i>Euripus</i>, + <i>Evripo</i>, <i>Negri-po</i>, <i>Negropont</i>, which dishonors our + maps, (D'Anville, Géographie Ancienne, tom. i. p. 263.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-57" id="linkBnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ Et sachiez que il ni ot + si hardi cui le cuer ne fremist, (c. 66.).. Chascuns regardoit ses + armes.... que par tems en arons mestier, (c. 67.) Such is the honesty of + courage.] + </p> + <p> + In relating the invasion of a great empire, it may seem strange that I + have not described the obstacles which should have checked the progress of + the strangers. The Greeks, in truth, were an unwarlike people; but they + were rich, industrious, and subject to the will of a single man: had that + man been capable of fear, when his enemies were at a distance, or of + courage, when they approached his person. The first rumor of his nephew's + alliance with the French and Venetians was despised by the usurper + Alexius: his flatterers persuaded him, that in this contempt he was bold + and sincere; and each evening, in the close of the banquet, he thrice + discomfited the Barbarians of the West. These Barbarians had been justly + terrified by the report of his naval power; and the sixteen hundred + fishing boats of Constantinople <a href="#linkBnote-58" + name="linkBnoteref-58" id="linkBnoteref-58">58</a> could have manned a + fleet, to sink them in the Adriatic, or stop their entrance in the mouth + of the Hellespont. But all force may be annihilated by the negligence of + the prince and the venality of his ministers. The great duke, or admiral, + made a scandalous, almost a public, auction of the sails, the masts, and + the rigging: the royal forests were reserved for the more important + purpose of the chase; and the trees, says Nicetas, were guarded by the + eunuchs, like the groves of religious worship. <a href="#linkBnote-59" + name="linkBnoteref-59" id="linkBnoteref-59">59</a> From his dream of + pride, Alexius was awakened by the siege of Zara, and the rapid advances + of the Latins; as soon as he saw the danger was real, he thought it + inevitable, and his vain presumption was lost in abject despondency and + despair. He suffered these contemptible Barbarians to pitch their camp in + the sight of the palace; and his apprehensions were thinly disguised by + the pomp and menace of a suppliant embassy. The sovereign of the Romans + was astonished (his ambassadors were instructed to say) at the hostile + appearance of the strangers. If these pilgrims were sincere in their vow + for the deliverance of Jerusalem, his voice must applaud, and his + treasures should assist, their pious design but should they dare to invade + the sanctuary of empire, their numbers, were they ten times more + considerable, should not protect them from his just resentment. The answer + of the doge and barons was simple and magnanimous. "In the cause of honor + and justice," they said, "we despise the usurper of Greece, his threats, + and his offers. <i>Our</i> friendship and <i>his</i> allegiance are due to + the lawful heir, to the young prince, who is seated among us, and to his + father, the emperor Isaac, who has been deprived of his sceptre, his + freedom, and his eyes, by the crime of an ungrateful brother. Let that + brother confess his guilt, and implore forgiveness, and we ourselves will + intercede, that he may be permitted to live in affluence and security. But + let him not insult us by a second message; our reply will be made in arms, + in the palace of Constantinople." + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-58" id="linkBnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ Eandem urbem plus in + solis navibus piscatorum abundare, quam illos in toto navigio. Habebat + enim mille et sexcentas piscatorias naves..... Bellicas autem sive + mercatorias habebant infinitæ multitudinis et portum tutissimum. Gunther, + Hist. C. P. c. 8, p. 10.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-59" id="linkBnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ Kaqaper iervn alsewn, + eipein de kai Jeojuteutwn paradeiswn ejeid?onto toutwni. Nicetas in Alex. + Comneno, l. iii. c. 9, p. 348.] + </p> + <p> + On the tenth day of their encampment at Scutari, the crusaders prepared + themselves, as soldiers and as Catholics, for the passage of the + Bosphorus. Perilous indeed was the adventure; the stream was broad and + rapid: in a calm the current of the Euxine might drive down the liquid and + unextinguishable fires of the Greeks; and the opposite shores of Europe + were defended by seventy thousand horse and foot in formidable array. On + this memorable day, which happened to be bright and pleasant, the Latins + were distributed in six battles or divisions; the first, or vanguard, was + led by the count of Flanders, one of the most powerful of the Christian + princes in the skill and number of his crossbows. The four successive + battles of the French were commanded by his brother Henry, the counts of + St. Pol and Blois, and Matthew of Montmorency; the last of whom was + honored by the voluntary service of the marshal and nobles of Champagne. + The sixth division, the rear-guard and reserve of the army, was conducted + by the marquis of Montferrat, at the head of the Germans and Lombards. The + chargers, saddled, with their long caparisons dragging on the ground, + were embarked in the flat <i>palanders</i>; <a href="#linkBnote-60" + name="linkBnoteref-60" id="linkBnoteref-60">60</a> and the knights stood + by the side of their horses, in complete armor, their helmets laced, and + their lances in their hands. The numerous train of sergeants <a + href="#linkBnote-61" name="linkBnoteref-61" id="linkBnoteref-61">61</a> + and archers occupied the transports; and each transport was towed by the + strength and swiftness of a galley. The six divisions traversed the + Bosphorus, without encountering an enemy or an obstacle: to land the + foremost was the wish, to conquer or die was the resolution, of every + division and of every soldier. Jealous of the preeminence of danger, the + knights in their heavy armor leaped into the sea, when it rose as high as + their girdle; the sergeants and archers were animated by their valor; and + the squires, letting down the draw-bridges of the palanders, led the + horses to the shore. Before their squadrons could mount, and form, and + couch their Lances, the seventy thousand Greeks had vanished from their + sight: the timid Alexius gave the example to his troops; and it was only + by the plunder of his rich pavilions that the Latins were informed that + they had fought against an emperor. In the first consternation of the + flying enemy, they resolved, by a double attack, to open the entrance of + the harbor. The tower of Galata, <a href="#linkBnote-62" + name="linkBnoteref-62" id="linkBnoteref-62">62</a> in the suburb of Pera, + was attacked and stormed by the French, while the Venetians assumed the + more difficult task of forcing the boom or chain that was stretched from + that tower to the Byzantine shore. After some fruitless attempts, their + intrepid perseverance prevailed: twenty ships of war, the relics of the + Grecian navy, were either sunk or taken: the enormous and massy links of + iron were cut asunder by the shears, or broken by the weight, of the + galleys; <a href="#linkBnote-63" name="linkBnoteref-63" + id="linkBnoteref-63">63</a> and the Venetian fleet, safe and triumphant, + rode at anchor in the port of Constantinople. By these daring + achievements, a remnant of twenty thousand Latins solicited the license of + besieging a capital which contained above four hundred thousand + inhabitants, <a href="#linkBnote-64" name="linkBnoteref-64" + id="linkBnoteref-64">64</a> able, though not willing, to bear arms in + defence of their country. Such an account would indeed suppose a + population of near two millions; but whatever abatement may be required in + the numbers of the Greeks, the <i>belief</i> of those numbers will equally + exalt the fearless spirit of their assailants. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-60" id="linkBnote-60"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 60 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-60">return</a>)<br /> [ From the version of + Vignere I adopt the well-sounding word <i>palander</i>, which is still + used, I believe, in the Mediterranean. But had I written in French, I + should have preserved the original and expressive denomination of <i>vessiers</i> + or <i>huissiers</i>, from the <i>huis</i> or door which was let down as a + draw-bridge; but which, at sea, was closed into the side of the ship, (see + Ducange au Villehardouin, No. 14, and Joinville. p. 27, 28, edit. du + Louvre.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-61" id="linkBnote-61"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 61 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-61">return</a>)<br /> [ To avoid the vague + expressions of followers, &c., I use, after Villehardouin, the word <i>sergeants</i> + for all horsemen who were not knights. There were sergeants at arms, and + sergeants at law; and if we visit the parade and Westminster Hall, we may + observe the strange result of the distinction, (Ducange, Glossar. Latin, + <i>Servientes</i>, &c., tom. vi. p. 226—231.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-62" id="linkBnote-62"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 62 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-62">return</a>)<br /> [ It is needless to + observe, that on the subject of Galata, the chain, &c., Ducange is + accurate and full. Consult likewise the proper chapters of the C. P. + Christiana of the same author. The inhabitants of Galata were so vain and + ignorant, that they applied to themselves St. Paul's Epistle to the + Galatians.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-63" id="linkBnote-63"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 63 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-63">return</a>)<br /> [ The vessel that broke + the chain was named the Eagle, <i>Aquila</i>, (Dandolo, Chronicon, p. + 322,) which Blondus (de Gestis Venet.) has changed into <i>Aquilo</i>, the + north wind. Ducange (Observations, No. 83) maintains the latter reading; + but he had not seen the respectable text of Dandolo, nor did he enough + consider the topography of the harbor. The south-east would have been a + more effectual wind. (Note to Wilken, vol. v. p. 215.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-64" id="linkBnote-64"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 64 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-64">return</a>)<br /> [ Quatre cens mil homes ou + plus, (Villehardouin, No. 134,) must be understood of <i>men</i> of a + military age. Le Beau (Hist. du. Bas Empire, tom. xx. p. 417) allows + Constantinople a million of inhabitants, of whom 60,000 horse, and an + infinite number of foot-soldiers. In its present decay, the capital of the + Ottoman empire may contain 400,000 souls, (Bell's Travels, vol. ii. p. + 401, 402;) but as the Turks keep no registers, and as circumstances are + fallacious, it is impossible to ascertain (Niebuhr, Voyage en Arabie, tom. + i. p. 18, 19) the real populousness of their cities.] + </p> + <p> + In the choice of the attack, the French and Venetians were divided by + their habits of life and warfare. The former affirmed with truth, that + Constantinople was most accessible on the side of the sea and the harbor. + The latter might assert with honor, that they had long enough trusted + their lives and fortunes to a frail bark and a precarious element, and + loudly demanded a trial of knighthood, a firm ground, and a close onset, + either on foot or on horseback. After a prudent compromise, of employing + the two nations by sea and land, in the service best suited to their + character, the fleet covering the army, they both proceeded from the + entrance to the extremity of the harbor: the stone bridge of the river was + hastily repaired; and the six battles of the French formed their + encampment against the front of the capital, the basis of the triangle + which runs about four miles from the port to the Propontis. <a + href="#linkBnote-65" name="linkBnoteref-65" id="linkBnoteref-65">65</a> On + the edge of a broad ditch, at the foot of a lofty rampart, they had + leisure to contemplate the difficulties of their enterprise. The gates to + the right and left of their narrow camp poured forth frequent sallies of + cavalry and light-infantry, which cut off their stragglers, swept the + country of provisions, sounded the alarm five or six times in the course + of each day, and compelled them to plant a palisade, and sink an + intrenchment, for their immediate safety. In the supplies and convoys the + Venetians had been too sparing, or the Franks too voracious: the usual + complaints of hunger and scarcity were heard, and perhaps felt their stock + of flour would be exhausted in three weeks; and their disgust of salt meat + tempted them to taste the flesh of their horses. The trembling usurper was + supported by Theodore Lascaris, his son-in-law, a valiant youth, who + aspired to save and to rule his country; the Greeks, regardless of that + country, were awakened to the defence of their religion; but their firmest + hope was in the strength and spirit of the Varangian guards, of the Danes + and English, as they are named in the writers of the times. <a + href="#linkBnote-66" name="linkBnoteref-66" id="linkBnoteref-66">66</a> + After ten days' incessant labor, the ground was levelled, the ditch + filled, the approaches of the besiegers were regularly made, and two + hundred and fifty engines of assault exercised their various powers to + clear the rampart, to batter the walls, and to sap the foundations. On the + first appearance of a breach, the scaling-ladders were applied: the + numbers that defended the vantage ground repulsed and oppressed the + adventurous Latins; but they admired the resolution of fifteen knights and + sergeants, who had gained the ascent, and maintained their perilous + station till they were precipitated or made prisoners by the Imperial + guards. On the side of the harbor the naval attack was more successfully + conducted by the Venetians; and that industrious people employed every + resource that was known and practiced before the invention of gunpowder. A + double line, three bow-shots in front, was formed by the galleys and + ships; and the swift motion of the former was supported by the weight and + loftiness of the latter, whose decks, and poops, and turret, were the + platforms of military engines, that discharged their shot over the heads + of the first line. The soldiers, who leaped from the galleys on shore, + immediately planted and ascended their scaling-ladders, while the large + ships, advancing more slowly into the intervals, and lowering a + draw-bridge, opened a way through the air from their masts to the rampart. + In the midst of the conflict, the doge, a venerable and conspicuous form, + stood aloft in complete armor on the prow of his galley. The great + standard of St. Mark was displayed before him; his threats, promises, and + exhortations, urged the diligence of the rowers; his vessel was the first + that struck; and Dandolo was the first warrior on the shore. The nations + admired the magnanimity of the blind old man, without reflecting that his + age and infirmities diminished the price of life, and enhanced the value + of immortal glory. On a sudden, by an invisible hand, (for the + standard-bearer was probably slain,) the banner of the republic was fixed + on the rampart: twenty-five towers were rapidly occupied; and, by the + cruel expedient of fire, the Greeks were driven from the adjacent quarter. + The doge had despatched the intelligence of his success, when he was + checked by the danger of his confederates. Nobly declaring that he would + rather die with the pilgrims than gain a victory by their destruction, + Dandolo relinquished his advantage, recalled his troops, and hastened to + the scene of action. He found the six weary diminutive <i>battles</i> of + the French encompassed by sixty squadrons of the Greek cavalry, the least + of which was more numerous than the largest of their divisions. Shame and + despair had provoked Alexius to the last effort of a general sally; but he + was awed by the firm order and manly aspect of the Latins; and, after + skirmishing at a distance, withdrew his troops in the close of the + evening. The silence or tumult of the night exasperated his fears; and the + timid usurper, collecting a treasure of ten thousand pounds of gold, + basely deserted his wife, his people, and his fortune; threw himself into + a bark; stole through the Bosphorus; and landed in shameful safety in an + obscure harbor of Thrace. As soon as they were apprised of his flight, the + Greek nobles sought pardon and peace in the dungeon where the blind Isaac + expected each hour the visit of the executioner. Again saved and exalted + by the vicissitudes of fortune, the captive in his Imperial robes was + replaced on the throne, and surrounded with prostrate slaves, whose real + terror and affected joy he was incapable of discerning. At the dawn of + day, hostilities were suspended, and the Latin chiefs were surprised by a + message from the lawful and reigning emperor, who was impatient to embrace + his son, and to reward his generous deliverers. <a href="#linkBnote-67" + name="linkBnoteref-67" id="linkBnoteref-67">67</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-65" id="linkBnote-65"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 65 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-65">return</a>)<br /> [ On the most correct + plans of Constantinople, I know not how to measure more than 4000 paces. + Yet Villehardouin computes the space at three leagues, (No. 86.) If his + eye were not deceived, he must reckon by the old Gallic league of 1500 + paces, which might still be used in Champagne.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-66" id="linkBnote-66"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 66 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-66">return</a>)<br /> [ The guards, the Varangi, + are styled by Villehardouin, (No. 89, 95) Englois et Danois avec leurs + haches. Whatever had been their origin, a French pilgrim could not be + mistaken in the nations of which they were at that time composed.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-67" id="linkBnote-67"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 67 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-67">return</a>)<br /> [ For the first siege and + conquest of Constantinople, we may read the original letter of the + crusaders to Innocent III., Gesta, c. 91, p. 533, 534. Villehardouin, No. + 75—99. Nicetas, in Alexio Comnen. l. iii. c. 10, p. 349—352. + Dandolo, in Chron. p. 322. Gunther, and his abbot Martin, were not yet + returned from their obstinate pilgrim age to Jerusalem, or St. John + d'Acre, where the greatest part of the company had died of the plague.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkB2HCH0003" id="linkB2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LX: The Fourth Crusade.—Part III. + </h2> + <p> + But these generous deliverers were unwilling to release their hostage, + till they had obtained from his father the payment, or at least the + promise, of their recompense. They chose four ambassadors, Matthew of + Montmorency, our historian the marshal of Champagne, and two Venetians, to + congratulate the emperor. The gates were thrown open on their approach, + the streets on both sides were lined with the battle axes of the Danish + and English guard: the presence-chamber glittered with gold and jewels, + the false substitute of virtue and power: by the side of the blind Isaac + his wife was seated, the sister of the king of Hungary: and by her + appearance, the noble matrons of Greece were drawn from their domestic + retirement, and mingled with the circle of senators and soldiers. The + Latins, by the mouth of the marshal, spoke like men conscious of their + merits, but who respected the work of their own hands; and the emperor + clearly understood, that his son's engagements with Venice and the + pilgrims must be ratified without hesitation or delay. Withdrawing into a + private chamber with the empress, a chamberlain, an interpreter, and the + four ambassadors, the father of young Alexius inquired with some anxiety + into the nature of his stipulations. The submission of the Eastern empire + to the pope, the succor of the Holy Land, and a present contribution of + two hundred thousand marks of silver.—"These conditions are + weighty," was his prudent reply: "they are hard to accept, and difficult + to perform. But no conditions can exceed the measure of your services and + deserts." After this satisfactory assurance, the barons mounted on + horseback, and introduced the heir of Constantinople to the city and + palace: his youth and marvellous adventures engaged every heart in his + favor, and Alexius was solemnly crowned with his father in the dome of St. + Sophia. In the first days of his reign, the people, already blessed with + the restoration of plenty and peace, was delighted by the joyful + catastrophe of the tragedy; and the discontent of the nobles, their + regret, and their fears, were covered by the polished surface of pleasure + and loyalty The mixture of two discordant nations in the same capital + might have been pregnant with mischief and danger; and the suburb of + Galata, or Pera, was assigned for the quarters of the French and + Venetians. But the liberty of trade and familiar intercourse was allowed + between the friendly nations: and each day the pilgrims were tempted by + devotion or curiosity to visit the churches and palaces of Constantinople. + Their rude minds, insensible perhaps of the finer arts, were astonished by + the magnificent scenery: and the poverty of their native towns enhanced + the populousness and riches of the first metropolis of Christendom. <a + href="#linkBnote-68" name="linkBnoteref-68" id="linkBnoteref-68">68</a> + Descending from his state, young Alexius was prompted by interest and + gratitude to repeat his frequent and familiar visits to his Latin allies; + and in the freedom of the table, the gay petulance of the French sometimes + forgot the emperor of the East. <a href="#linkBnote-69" + name="linkBnoteref-69" id="linkBnoteref-69">69</a> In their most serious + conferences, it was agreed, that the reunion of the two churches must be + the result of patience and time; but avarice was less tractable than zeal; + and a larger sum was instantly disbursed to appease the wants, and silence + the importunity, of the crusaders. <a href="#linkBnote-70" + name="linkBnoteref-70" id="linkBnoteref-70">70</a> Alexius was alarmed by + the approaching hour of their departure: their absence might have relieved + him from the engagement which he was yet incapable of performing; but his + friends would have left him, naked and alone, to the caprice and prejudice + of a perfidious nation. He wished to bribe their stay, the delay of a + year, by undertaking to defray their expense, and to satisfy, in their + name, the freight of the Venetian vessels. The offer was agitated in the + council of the barons; and, after a repetition of their debates and + scruples, a majority of votes again acquiesced in the advice of the doge + and the prayer of the young emperor. At the price of sixteen hundred + pounds of gold, he prevailed on the marquis of Montferrat to lead him with + an army round the provinces of Europe; to establish his authority, and + pursue his uncle, while Constantinople was awed by the presence of Baldwin + and his confederates of France and Flanders. The expedition was + successful: the blind emperor exulted in the success of his arms, and + listened to the predictions of his flatterers, that the same Providence + which had raised him from the dungeon to the throne, would heal his gout, + restore his sight, and watch over the long prosperity of his reign. Yet + the mind of the suspicious old man was tormented by the rising glories of + his son; nor could his pride conceal from his envy, that, while his own + name was pronounced in faint and reluctant acclamations, the royal youth + was the theme of spontaneous and universal praise. <a href="#linkBnote-71" + name="linkBnoteref-71" id="linkBnoteref-71">71</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-68" id="linkBnote-68"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 68 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-68">return</a>)<br /> [ Compare, in the rude + energy of Villehardouin, (No. 66, 100,) the inside and outside views of + Constantinople, and their impression on the minds of the pilgrims: cette + ville (says he) que de toutes les autres ere souveraine. See the parallel + passages of Fulcherius CarBnotensis, Hist. Hierosol. l. i. c. 4, and Will. + Tyr. ii. 3, xx. 26.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-69" id="linkBnote-69"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 69 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-69">return</a>)<br /> [ As they played at dice, + the Latins took off his diadem, and clapped on his head a woollen or hairy + cap, to megaloprepeV kai pagkleiston katerrupainen onoma, (Nicetas, p. + 358.) If these merry companions were Venetians, it was the insolence of + trade and a commonwealth.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-70" id="linkBnote-70"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 70 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-70">return</a>)<br /> [ Villehardouin, No. 101. + Dandolo, p. 322. The doge affirms, that the Venetians were paid more + slowly than the French; but he owns, that the histories of the two nations + differed on that subject. Had he read Villehardouin? The Greeks + complained, however, good totius Græciæ opes transtulisset, (Gunther, + Hist. C. P. c 13) See the lamentations and invectives of Nicetas, (p. + 355.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-71" id="linkBnote-71"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 71 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-71">return</a>)<br /> [ The reign of Alexius + Comnenus occupies three books in Nicetas, p. 291—352. The short + restoration of Isaac and his son is despatched in five chapters, p. 352—362.] + </p> + <p> + By the recent invasion, the Greeks were awakened from a dream of nine + centuries; from the vain presumption that the capital of the Roman empire + was impregnable to foreign arms. The strangers of the West had violated + the city, and bestowed the sceptre, of Constantine: their Imperial clients + soon became as unpopular as themselves: the well-known vices of Isaac were + rendered still more contemptible by his infirmities, and the young Alexius + was hated as an apostate, who had renounced the manners and religion of + his country. His secret covenant with the Latins was divulged or + suspected; the people, and especially the clergy, were devoutly attached + to their faith and superstition; and every convent, and every shop, + resounded with the danger of the church and the tyranny of the pope. <a + href="#linkBnote-72" name="linkBnoteref-72" id="linkBnoteref-72">72</a> An + empty treasury could ill supply the demands of regal luxury and foreign + extortion: the Greeks refused to avert, by a general tax, the impending + evils of servitude and pillage; the oppression of the rich excited a more + dangerous and personal resentment; and if the emperor melted the plate, + and despoiled the images, of the sanctuary, he seemed to justify the + complaints of heresy and sacrilege. During the absence of Marquis Boniface + and his Imperial pupil, Constantinople was visited with a calamity which + might be justly imputed to the zeal and indiscretion of the Flemish + pilgrims. <a href="#linkBnote-73" name="linkBnoteref-73" + id="linkBnoteref-73">73</a> In one of their visits to the city, they were + scandalized by the aspect of a mosque or synagogue, in which one God was + worshipped, without a partner or a son. Their effectual mode of + controversy was to attack the infidels with the sword, and their + habitation with fire: but the infidels, and some Christian neighbors, + presumed to defend their lives and properties; and the flames which + bigotry had kindled, consumed the most orthodox and innocent structures. + During eight days and nights, the conflagration spread above a league in + front, from the harbor to the Propontis, over the thickest and most + populous regions of the city. It is not easy to count the stately churches + and palaces that were reduced to a smoking ruin, to value the merchandise + that perished in the trading streets, or to number the families that were + involved in the common destruction. By this outrage, which the doge and + the barons in vain affected to disclaim, the name of the Latins became + still more unpopular; and the colony of that nation, above fifteen + thousand persons, consulted their safety in a hasty retreat from the city + to the protection of their standard in the suburb of Pera. The emperor + returned in triumph; but the firmest and most dexterous policy would have + been insufficient to steer him through the tempest, which overwhelmed the + person and government of that unhappy youth. His own inclination, and his + father's advice, attached him to his benefactors; but Alexius hesitated + between gratitude and patriotism, between the fear of his subjects and of + his allies. <a href="#linkBnote-74" name="linkBnoteref-74" + id="linkBnoteref-74">74</a> By his feeble and fluctuating conduct he lost + the esteem and confidence of both; and, while he invited the marquis of + Monferrat to occupy the palace, he suffered the nobles to conspire, and + the people to arm, for the deliverance of their country. Regardless of his + painful situation, the Latin chiefs repeated their demands, resented his + delays, suspected his intentions, and exacted a decisive answer of peace + or war. The haughty summons was delivered by three French knights and + three Venetian deputies, who girded their swords, mounted their horses, + pierced through the angry multitude, and entered, with a fearful + countenance, the palace and presence of the Greek emperor. In a peremptory + tone, they recapitulated their services and his engagements; and boldly + declared, that unless their just claims were fully and immediately + satisfied, they should no longer hold him either as a sovereign or a + friend. After this defiance, the first that had ever wounded an Imperial + ear, they departed without betraying any symptoms of fear; but their + escape from a servile palace and a furious city astonished the ambassadors + themselves; and their return to the camp was the signal of mutual + hostility. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-72" id="linkBnote-72"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 72 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-72">return</a>)<br /> [ When Nicetas reproaches + Alexius for his impious league, he bestows the harshest names on the + pope's new religion, meizon kai atopwtaton... parektrophn pistewV... tvn + tou Papa pronomiwn kainismon,... metaqesin te kai metapoihsin tvn palaivn + 'RwmaioiV?eqvn, (p. 348.) Such was the sincere language of every Greek to + the last gasp of the empire.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-73" id="linkBnote-73"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 73 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-73">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas (p. 355) is + positive in the charge, and specifies the Flemings, (FlamioneV,) though he + is wrong in supposing it an ancient name. Villehardouin (No. 107) + exculpates the barons, and is ignorant (perhaps affectedly ignorant) of + the names of the guilty.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-74" id="linkBnote-74"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 74 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-74">return</a>)<br /> [ Compare the suspicions + and complaints of Nicetas (p. 359—362) with the blunt charges of + Baldwin of Flanders, (Gesta Innocent III. c. 92, p. 534,) cum patriarcha + et mole nobilium, nobis promises perjurus et mendax.] + </p> + <p> + Among the Greeks, all authority and wisdom were overborne by the impetuous + multitude, who mistook their rage for valor, their numbers for strength, + and their fanaticism for the support and inspiration of Heaven. In the + eyes of both nations Alexius was false and contemptible; the base and + spurious race of the Angeli was rejected with clamorous disdain; and the + people of Constantinople encompassed the senate, to demand at their hands + a more worthy emperor. To every senator, conspicuous by his birth or + dignity, they successively presented the purple: by each senator the + deadly garment was repulsed: the contest lasted three days; and we may + learn from the historian Nicetas, one of the members of the assembly, that + fear and weaknesses were the guardians of their loyalty. A phantom, who + vanished in oblivion, was forcibly proclaimed by the crowd: <a + href="#linkBnote-75" name="linkBnoteref-75" id="linkBnoteref-75">75</a> + but the author of the tumult, and the leader of the war, was a prince of + the house of Ducas; and his common appellation of Alexius must be + discriminated by the epithet of Mourzoufle, <a href="#linkBnote-76" + name="linkBnoteref-76" id="linkBnoteref-76">76</a> which in the vulgar + idiom expressed the close junction of his black and shaggy eyebrows. At + once a patriot and a courtier, the perfidious Mourzoufle, who was not + destitute of cunning and courage, opposed the Latins both in speech and + action, inflamed the passions and prejudices of the Greeks, and insinuated + himself into the favor and confidence of Alexius, who trusted him with the + office of great chamberlain, and tinged his buskins with the colors of + royalty. At the dead of night, he rushed into the bed-chamber with an + affrighted aspect, exclaiming, that the palace was attacked by the people + and betrayed by the guards. Starting from his couch, the unsuspecting + prince threw himself into the arms of his enemy, who had contrived his + escape by a private staircase. But that staircase terminated in a prison: + Alexius was seized, stripped, and loaded with chains; and, after tasting + some days the bitterness of death, he was poisoned, or strangled, or + beaten with clubs, at the command, or in the presence, of the tyrant. The + emperor Isaac Angelus soon followed his son to the grave; and Mourzoufle, + perhaps, might spare the superfluous crime of hastening the extinction of + impotence and blindness. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-75" id="linkBnote-75"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 75 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-75">return</a>)<br /> [ His name was Nicholas + Canabus: he deserved the praise of Nicetas and the vengeance of + Mourzoufle, (p. 362.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-76" id="linkBnote-76"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 76 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-76">return</a>)<br /> [ Villehardouin (No. 116) + speaks of him as a favorite, without knowing that he was a prince of the + blood, <i>Angelus</i> and <i>Ducas</i>. Ducange, who pries into every + corner, believes him to be the son of Isaac Ducas Sebastocrator, and + second cousin of young Alexius.] + </p> + <p> + The death of the emperors, and the usurpation of Mourzoufle, had changed + the nature of the quarrel. It was no longer the disagreement of allies who + overvalued their services, or neglected their obligations: the French and + Venetians forgot their complaints against Alexius, dropped a tear on the + untimely fate of their companion, and swore revenge against the perfidious + nation who had crowned his assassin. Yet the prudent doge was still + inclined to negotiate: he asked as a debt, a subsidy, or a fine, fifty + thousand pounds of gold, about two millions sterling; nor would the + conference have been abruptly broken, if the zeal, or policy, of + Mourzoufle had not refused to sacrifice the Greek church to the safety of + the state. <a href="#linkBnote-77" name="linkBnoteref-77" + id="linkBnoteref-77">77</a> Amidst the invectives of his foreign and + domestic enemies, we may discern, that he was not unworthy of the + character which he had assumed, of the public champion: the second siege + of Constantinople was far more laborious than the first; the treasury was + replenished, and discipline was restored, by a severe inquisition into the + abuses of the former reign; and Mourzoufle, an iron mace in his hand, + visiting the posts, and affecting the port and aspect of a warrior, was an + object of terror to his soldiers, at least, and to his kinsmen. Before and + after the death of Alexius, the Greeks made two vigorous and + well-conducted attempts to burn the navy in the harbor; but the skill and + courage of the Venetians repulsed the fire-ships; and the vagrant flames + wasted themselves without injury in the sea. <a href="#linkBnote-78" + name="linkBnoteref-78" id="linkBnoteref-78">78</a> In a nocturnal sally + the Greek emperor was vanquished by Henry, brother of the count of + Flanders: the advantages of number and surprise aggravated the shame of + his defeat: his buckler was found on the field of battle; and the Imperial + standard, <a href="#linkBnote-79" name="linkBnoteref-79" + id="linkBnoteref-79">79</a> a divine image of the Virgin, was presented, + as a trophy and a relic to the Cistercian monks, the disciples of St. + Bernard. Near three months, without excepting the holy season of Lent, + were consumed in skirmishes and preparations, before the Latins were ready + or resolved for a general assault. The land fortifications had been found + impregnable; and the Venetian pilots represented, that, on the shore of + the Propontis, the anchorage was unsafe, and the ships must be driven by + the current far away to the straits of the Hellespont; a prospect not + unpleasing to the reluctant pilgrims, who sought every opportunity of + breaking the army. From the harbor, therefore, the assault was determined + by the assailants, and expected by the besieged; and the emperor had + placed his scarlet pavilions on a neighboring height, to direct and + animate the efforts of his troops. A fearless spectator, whose mind could + entertain the ideas of pomp and pleasure, might have admired the long + array of two embattled armies, which extended above half a league, the one + on the ships and galleys, the other on the walls and towers raised above + the ordinary level by several stages of wooden turrets. Their first fury + was spent in the discharge of darts, stones, and fire, from the engines; + but the water was deep; the French were bold; the Venetians were skilful; + they approached the walls; and a desperate conflict of swords, spears, and + battle-axes, was fought on the trembling bridges that grappled the + floating, to the stable, batteries. In more than a hundred places, the + assault was urged, and the defence was sustained; till the superiority of + ground and numbers finally prevailed, and the Latin trumpets sounded a + retreat. On the ensuing days, the attack was renewed with equal vigor, and + a similar event; and, in the night, the doge and the barons held a + council, apprehensive only for the public danger: not a voice pronounced + the words of escape or treaty; and each warrior, according to his temper, + embraced the hope of victory, or the assurance of a glorious death. <a + href="#linkBnote-80" name="linkBnoteref-80" id="linkBnoteref-80">80</a> By + the experience of the former siege, the Greeks were instructed, but the + Latins were animated; and the knowledge that Constantinople might be + taken, was of more avail than the local precautions which that knowledge + had inspired for its defence. In the third assault, two ships were linked + together to double their strength; a strong north wind drove them on the + shore; the bishops of Troyes and Soissons led the van; and the auspicious + names of the <i>pilgrim</i> and the <i>paradise</i> resounded along the + line. <a href="#linkBnote-81" name="linkBnoteref-81" id="linkBnoteref-81">81</a> + The episcopal banners were displayed on the walls; a hundred marks of + silver had been promised to the first adventurers; and if their reward was + intercepted by death, their names have been immortalized by fame. <a + href="#linkBnote-811" name="linkBnoteref-811" id="linkBnoteref-811">811</a> + Four towers were scaled; three gates were burst open; and the French + knights, who might tremble on the waves, felt themselves invincible on + horseback on the solid ground. Shall I relate that the thousands who + guarded the emperor's person fled on the approach, and before the lance, + of a single warrior? Their ignominious flight is attested by their + countryman Nicetas: an army of phantoms marched with the French hero, and + he was magnified to a giant in the eyes of the Greeks. <a + href="#linkBnote-82" name="linkBnoteref-82" id="linkBnoteref-82">82</a> + While the fugitives deserted their posts and cast away their arms, the + Latins entered the city under the banners of their leaders: the streets + and gates opened for their passage; and either design or accident kindled + a third conflagration, which consumed in a few hours the measure of three + of the largest cities of France. <a href="#linkBnote-83" + name="linkBnoteref-83" id="linkBnoteref-83">83</a> In the close of + evening, the barons checked their troops, and fortified their stations: + They were awed by the extent and populousness of the capital, which might + yet require the labor of a month, if the churches and palaces were + conscious of their internal strength. But in the morning, a suppliant + procession, with crosses and images, announced the submission of the + Greeks, and deprecated the wrath of the conquerors: the usurper escaped + through the golden gate: the palaces of Blachernæ and Boucoleon were + occupied by the count of Flanders and the marquis of Montferrat; and the + empire, which still bore the name of Constantine, and the title of Roman, + was subverted by the arms of the Latin pilgrims. <a href="#linkBnote-84" + name="linkBnoteref-84" id="linkBnoteref-84">84</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-77" id="linkBnote-77"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 77 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-77">return</a>)<br /> [ This negotiation, + probable in itself, and attested by Nicetas, (p 65,) is omitted as + scandalous by the delicacy of Dandolo and Villehardouin. * Note: Wilken + places it before the death of Alexius, vol. v. p. 276.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-78" id="linkBnote-78"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 78 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-78">return</a>)<br /> [ Baldwin mentions both + attempts to fire the fleet, (Gest. c. 92, p. 534, 535;) Villehardouin, + (No. 113—15) only describes the first. It is remarkable that neither + of these warriors observe any peculiar properties in the Greek fire.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-79" id="linkBnote-79"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 79 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-79">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducange (No. 119) pours + forth a torrent of learning on the <i>Gonfanon Imperial</i>. This banner + of the Virgin is shown at Venice as a trophy and relic: if it be genuine + the pious doge must have cheated the monks of Citeaux.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-80" id="linkBnote-80"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 80 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-80">return</a>)<br /> [ Villehardouin (No. 126) + confesses, that mult ere grant peril; and Guntherus (Hist. C. P. c. 13) + affirms, that nulla spes victoriæ arridere poterat. Yet the knight + despises those who thought of flight, and the monk praises his countrymen + who were resolved on death.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-81" id="linkBnote-81"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 81 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-81">return</a>)<br /> [ Baldwin, and all the + writers, honor the names of these two galleys, felici auspicio.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-811" id="linkBnote-811"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 811 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-811">return</a>)<br /> [ Pietro Alberti, a + Venetian noble and Andrew d'Amboise a French knight.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-82" id="linkBnote-82"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 82 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-82">return</a>)<br /> [ With an allusion to + Homer, Nicetas calls him enneorguioV, nine orgyæ, or eighteen yards high, + a stature which would, indeed, have excused the terror of the Greek. On + this occasion, the historian seems fonder of the marvellous than of his + country, or perhaps of truth. Baldwin exclaims in the words of the + psalmist, persequitur unus ex nobis centum alienos.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-83" id="linkBnote-83"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 83 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-83">return</a>)<br /> [ Villehardouin (No. 130) + is again ignorant of the authors of <i>this</i> more legitimate fire, + which is ascribed by Gunther to a quidam comes Teutonicus, (c. 14.) They + seem ashamed, the incendiaries!] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-84" id="linkBnote-84"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 84 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-84">return</a>)<br /> [ For the second siege and + conquest of Constantinople, see Villehardouin (No. 113—132,) + Baldwin's iid Epistle to Innocent III., (Gesta c. 92, p. 534—537,) + with the whole reign of Mourzoufle, in Nicetas, (p 363—375;) and + borrowed some hints from Dandolo (Chron. Venet. p. 323—330) and + Gunther, (Hist. C. P. c. 14—18,) who added the decorations of + prophecy and vision. The former produces an oracle of the Erythræan sibyl, + of a great armament on the Adriatic, under a blind chief, against + Byzantium, &c. Curious enough, were the prediction anterior to the + fact.] + </p> + <p> + Constantinople had been taken by storm; and no restraints, except those of + religion and humanity, were imposed on the conquerors by the laws of war. + Boniface, marquis of Montferrat, still acted as their general; and the + Greeks, who revered his name as that of their future sovereign, were heard + to exclaim in a lamentable tone, "Holy marquis-king, have mercy upon us!" + His prudence or compassion opened the gates of the city to the fugitives; + and he exhorted the soldiers of the cross to spare the lives of their + fellow-Christians. The streams of blood that flowed down the pages of + Nicetas may be reduced to the slaughter of two thousand of his unresisting + countrymen; <a href="#linkBnote-85" name="linkBnoteref-85" + id="linkBnoteref-85">85</a> and the greater part was massacred, not by the + strangers, but by the Latins, who had been driven from the city, and who + exercised the revenge of a triumphant faction. Yet of these exiles, some + were less mindful of injuries than of benefits; and Nicetas himself was + indebted for his safety to the generosity of a Venetian merchant. Pope + Innocent the Third accuses the pilgrims for respecting, in their lust, + neither age nor sex, nor religious profession; and bitterly laments that + the deeds of darkness, fornication, adultery, and incest, were perpetrated + in open day; and that noble matrons and holy nuns were polluted by the + grooms and peasants of the Catholic camp. <a href="#linkBnote-86" + name="linkBnoteref-86" id="linkBnoteref-86">86</a> It is indeed probable + that the license of victory prompted and covered a multitude of sins: but + it is certain, that the capital of the East contained a stock of venal or + willing beauty, sufficient to satiate the desires of twenty thousand + pilgrims; and female prisoners were no longer subject to the right or + abuse of domestic slavery. The marquis of Montferrat was the patron of + discipline and decency; the count of Flanders was the mirror of chastity: + they had forbidden, under pain of death, the rape of married women, or + virgins, or nuns; and the proclamation was sometimes invoked by the + vanquished <a href="#linkBnote-87" name="linkBnoteref-87" + id="linkBnoteref-87">87</a> and respected by the victors. Their cruelty + and lust were moderated by the authority of the chiefs, and feelings of + the soldiers; for we are no longer describing an irruption of the northern + savages; and however ferocious they might still appear, time, policy, and + religion had civilized the manners of the French, and still more of the + Italians. But a free scope was allowed to their avarice, which was + glutted, even in the holy week, by the pillage of Constantinople. The + right of victory, unshackled by any promise or treaty, had confiscated the + public and private wealth of the Greeks; and every hand, according to its + size and strength, might lawfully execute the sentence and seize the + forfeiture. A portable and universal standard of exchange was found in the + coined and uncoined metals of gold and silver, which each captor, at home + or abroad, might convert into the possessions most suitable to his temper + and situation. Of the treasures, which trade and luxury had accumulated, + the silks, velvets, furs, the gems, spices, and rich movables, were the + most precious, as they could not be procured for money in the ruder + countries of Europe. An order of rapine was instituted; nor was the share + of each individual abandoned to industry or chance. Under the tremendous + penalties of perjury, excommunication, and death, the Latins were bound to + deliver their plunder into the common stock: three churches were selected + for the deposit and distribution of the spoil: a single share was allotted + to a foot-soldier; two for a sergeant on horseback; four to a knight; and + larger proportions according to the rank and merit of the barons and + princes. For violating this sacred engagement, a knight belonging to the + count of St. Paul was hanged with his shield and coat of arms round his + neck; his example might render similar offenders more artful and discreet; + but avarice was more powerful than fear; and it is generally believed that + the secret far exceeded the acknowledged plunder. Yet the magnitude of the + prize surpassed the largest scale of experience or expectation. <a + href="#linkBnote-88" name="linkBnoteref-88" id="linkBnoteref-88">88</a> + After the whole had been equally divided between the French and Venetians, + fifty thousand marks were deducted to satisfy the debts of the former and + the demands of the latter. The residue of the French amounted to four + hundred thousand marks of silver, <a href="#linkBnote-89" + name="linkBnoteref-89" id="linkBnoteref-89">89</a> about eight hundred + thousand pounds sterling; nor can I better appreciate the value of that + sum in the public and private transactions of the age, than by defining it + as seven times the annual revenue of the kingdom of England. <a + href="#linkBnote-90" name="linkBnoteref-90" id="linkBnoteref-90">90</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-85" id="linkBnote-85"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 85 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-85">return</a>)<br /> [ Ceciderunt tamen eâ die + civium quasi duo millia, &c., (Gunther, c. 18.) Arithmetic is an + excellent touchstone to try the amplifications of passion and rhetoric.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-86" id="linkBnote-86"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 86 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-86">return</a>)<br /> [ Quidam (says Innocent + III., Gesta, c. 94, p. 538) nec religioni, nec ætati, nec sexui + pepercerunt: sed fornicationes, adulteria, et incestus in oculis omnium + exercentes, non solûm maritatas et viduas, sed et matronas et virgines + Deoque dicatas, exposuerunt spurcitiis garcionum. Villehardouin takes no + notice of these common incidents.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-87" id="linkBnote-87"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 87 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-87">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas saved, and + afterwards married, a noble virgin, (p. 380,) whom a soldier, eti martusi + polloiV onhdon epibrimwmenoV, had almost violated in spite of the entolai, + entalmata eu gegonotwn.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-88" id="linkBnote-88"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 88 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-88">return</a>)<br /> [ Of the general mass of + wealth, Gunther observes, ut de pauperibus et advenis cives ditissimi + redderentur, (Hist. C. P. c. 18; (Villehardouin, (No. 132,) that since the + creation, ne fu tant gaaignié dans une ville; Baldwin, (Gesta, c. 92,) ut + tantum tota non videatur possidere Latinitas.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-89" id="linkBnote-89"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 89 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-89">return</a>)<br /> [ Villehardouin, No. 133—135. + Instead of 400,000, there is a various reading of 500,000. The Venetians + had offered to take the whole booty, and to give 400 marks to each knight, + 200 to each priest and horseman, and 100 to each foot-soldier: they would + have been great losers, (Le Beau, Hist. du. Bas Empire tom. xx. p. 506. I + know not from whence.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-90" id="linkBnote-90"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 90 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-90">return</a>)<br /> [ At the council of Lyons + (A.D. 1245) the English ambassadors stated the revenue of the crown as + below that of the foreign clergy, which amounted to 60,000 marks a year, + (Matthew Paris, p. 451 Hume's Hist. of England, vol. ii. p. 170.)] + </p> + <p> + In this great revolution we enjoy the singular felicity of comparing the + narratives of Villehardouin and Nicetas, the opposite feelings of the + marshal of Champagne and the Byzantine senator. <a href="#linkBnote-91" + name="linkBnoteref-91" id="linkBnoteref-91">91</a> At the first view it + should seem that the wealth of Constantinople was only transferred from + one nation to another; and that the loss and sorrow of the Greeks is + exactly balanced by the joy and advantage of the Latins. But in the + miserable account of war, the gain is never equivalent to the loss, the + pleasure to the pain; the smiles of the Latins were transient and + fallacious; the Greeks forever wept over the ruins of their country; and + their real calamities were aggravated by sacrilege and mockery. What + benefits accrued to the conquerors from the three fires which annihilated + so vast a portion of the buildings and riches of the city? What a stock of + such things, as could neither be used nor transported, was maliciously or + wantonly destroyed! How much treasure was idly wasted in gaming, + debauchery, and riot! And what precious objects were bartered for a vile + price by the impatience or ignorance of the soldiers, whose reward was + stolen by the base industry of the last of the Greeks! These alone, who + had nothing to lose, might derive some profit from the revolution; but the + misery of the upper ranks of society is strongly painted in the personal + adventures of Nicetas himself. His stately palace had been reduced to ashes + in the second conflagration; and the senator, with his family and friends, + found an obscure shelter in another house which he possessed near the + church of St. Sophia. It was the door of this mean habitation that his + friend, the Venetian merchant, guarded in the disguise of a soldier, till + Nicetas could save, by a precipitate flight, the relics of his fortune and + the chastity of his daughter. In a cold, wintry season, these fugitives, + nursed in the lap of prosperity, departed on foot; his wife was with + child; the desertion of their slaves compelled them to carry their baggage + on their own shoulders; and their women, whom they placed in the centre, + were exhorted to conceal their beauty with dirt, instead of adorning it + with paint and jewels Every step was exposed to insult and danger: the + threats of the strangers were less painful than the taunts of the + plebeians, with whom they were now levelled; nor did the exiles breathe in + safety till their mournful pilgrimage was concluded at Selymbria, above + forty miles from the capital. On the way they overtook the patriarch, + without attendance and almost without apparel, riding on an ass, and + reduced to a state of apostolical poverty, which, had it been voluntary, + might perhaps have been meritorious. In the mean while, his desolate + churches were profaned by the licentiousness and party zeal of the Latins. + After stripping the gems and pearls, they converted the chalices into + drinking-cups; their tables, on which they gamed and feasted, were covered + with the pictures of Christ and the saints; and they trampled under foot + the most venerable objects of the Christian worship. In the cathedral of + St. Sophia, the ample veil of the sanctuary was rent asunder for the sake + of the golden fringe; and the altar, a monument of art and riches, was + broken in pieces and shared among the captors. Their mules and horses were + laden with the wrought silver and gilt carvings, which they tore down from + the doors and pulpit; and if the beasts stumbled under the burden, they + were stabbed by their impatient drivers, and the holy pavement streamed + with their impure blood. A prostitute was seated on the throne of the + patriarch; and that daughter of Belial, as she is styled, sung and danced + in the church, to ridicule the hymns and processions of the Orientals. Nor + were the repositories of the royal dead secure from violation: in the + church of the Apostles, the tombs of the emperors were rifled; and it is + said, that after six centuries the corpse of Justinian was found without + any signs of decay or putrefaction. In the streets, the French and + Flemings clothed themselves and their horses in painted robes and flowing + head-dresses of linen; and the coarse intemperance of their feasts <a + href="#linkBnote-92" name="linkBnoteref-92" id="linkBnoteref-92">92</a> + insulted the splendid sobriety of the East. To expose the arms of a people + of scribes and scholars, they affected to display a pen, an inkhorn, and a + sheet of paper, without discerning that the instruments of science and + valor were <i>alike</i> feeble and useless in the hands of the modern + Greeks. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-91" id="linkBnote-91"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 91 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-91">return</a>)<br /> [ The disorders of the + sack of Constantinople, and his own adventures, are feelingly described by + Nicetas, p. 367—369, and in the Status Urb. C. P. p. 375—384. + His complaints, even of sacrilege, are justified by Innocent III., (Gesta, + c. 92;) but Villehardouin does not betray a symptom of pity or remorse.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-92" id="linkBnote-92"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 92 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-92">return</a>)<br /> [ If I rightly apprehend + the Greek of Nicetas's receipts, their favorite dishes were boiled + buttocks of beef, salt pork and peas, and soup made of garlic and sharp or + sour herbs, (p. 382.)] + </p> + <p> + Their reputation and their language encouraged them, however, to despise + the ignorance and to overlook the progress of the Latins. <a + href="#linkBnote-93" name="linkBnoteref-93" id="linkBnoteref-93">93</a> In + the love of the arts, the national difference was still more obvious and + real; the Greeks preserved with reverence the works of their ancestors, + which they could not imitate; and, in the destruction of the statues of + Constantinople, we are provoked to join in the complaints and invectives + of the Byzantine historian. <a href="#linkBnote-94" name="linkBnoteref-94" + id="linkBnoteref-94">94</a> We have seen how the rising city was adorned + by the vanity and despotism of the Imperial founder: in the ruins of + paganism, some gods and heroes were saved from the axe of superstition; + and the forum and hippodrome were dignified with the relics of a better + age. Several of these are described by Nicetas, <a href="#linkBnote-95" + name="linkBnoteref-95" id="linkBnoteref-95">95</a> in a florid and + affected style; and from his descriptions I shall select some interesting + particulars. <i>1.</i> The victorious charioteers were cast in bronze, at + their own or the public charge, and fitly placed in the hippodrome: they + stood aloft in their chariots, wheeling round the goal: the spectators + could admire their attitude, and judge of the resemblance; and of these + figures, the most perfect might have been transported from the Olympic + stadium. <i>2.</i> The sphinx, river-horse, and crocodile, denote the + climate and manufacture of Egypt and the spoils of that ancient province. + <i>3.</i> The she-wolf suckling Romulus and Remus, a subject alike + pleasing to the <i>old</i> and the <i>new</i> Romans, but which could + really be treated before the decline of the Greek sculpture. <i>4.</i> An + eagle holding and tearing a serpent in his talons, a domestic monument of + the Byzantines, which they ascribed, not to a human artist, but to the + magic power of the philosopher Apollonius, who, by this talisman, + delivered the city from such venomous reptiles. <i>5.</i> An ass and his + driver, which were erected by Augustus in his colony of Nicopolis, to + commemorate a verbal omen of the victory of Actium. <i>6.</i> An + equestrian statue which passed, in the vulgar opinion, for Joshua, the + Jewish conqueror, stretching out his hand to stop the course of the + descending sun. A more classical tradition recognized the figures of + Bellerophon and Pegasus; and the free attitude of the steed seemed to mark + that he trod on air, rather than on the earth. <i>7.</i> A square and + lofty obelisk of brass; the sides were embossed with a variety of + picturesque and rural scenes, birds singing; rustics laboring, or playing + on their pipes; sheep bleating; lambs skipping; the sea, and a scene of + fish and fishing; little naked cupids laughing, playing, and pelting each + other with apples; and, on the summit, a female figure, turning with the + slightest breath, and thence denominated <i>the wind's attendant</i>. <i>8.</i> + The Phrygian shepherd presenting to Venus the prize of beauty, the apple + of discord. <i>9.</i> The incomparable statue of Helen, which is + delineated by Nicetas in the words of admiration and love: her well-turned + feet, snowy arms, rosy lips, bewitching smiles, swimming eyes, arched + eyebrows, the harmony of her shape, the lightness of her drapery, and her + flowing locks that waved in the wind; a beauty that might have moved her + Barbarian destroyers to pity and remorse. <i>10.</i> The manly or divine + form of Hercules, <a href="#linkBnote-96" name="linkBnoteref-96" + id="linkBnoteref-96">96</a> as he was restored to life by the masterhand + of Lysippus; of such magnitude, that his thumb was equal to his waist, his + leg to the stature, of a common man: <a href="#linkBnote-97" + name="linkBnoteref-97" id="linkBnoteref-97">97</a> his chest ample, his + shoulders broad, his limbs strong and muscular, his hair curled, his + aspect commanding. Without his bow, or quiver, or club, his lion's skin + carelessly thrown over him, he was seated on an osier basket, his right + leg and arm stretched to the utmost, his left knee bent, and supporting + his elbow, his head reclining on his left hand, his countenance indignant + and pensive. <i>11.</i> A colossal statue of Juno, which had once adorned + her temple of Samos, the enormous head by four yoke of oxen was + laboriously drawn to the palace. <i>12.</i> Another colossus, of Pallas or + Minerva, thirty feet in height, and representing with admirable spirit the + attributes and character of the martial maid. Before we accuse the Latins, + it is just to remark, that this Pallas was destroyed after the first + siege, by the fear and superstition of the Greeks themselves. <a + href="#linkBnote-98" name="linkBnoteref-98" id="linkBnoteref-98">98</a> + The other statues of brass which I have enumerated were broken and melted + by the unfeeling avarice of the crusaders: the cost and labor were + consumed in a moment; the soul of genius evaporated in smoke; and the + remnant of base metal was coined into money for the payment of the troops. + Bronze is not the most durable of monuments: from the marble forms of + Phidias and Praxiteles, the Latins might turn aside with stupid contempt; + <a href="#linkBnote-99" name="linkBnoteref-99" id="linkBnoteref-99">99</a> + but unless they were crushed by some accidental injury, those useless + stones stood secure on their pedestals. <a href="#linkBnote-100" + name="linkBnoteref-100" id="linkBnoteref-100">100</a> The most enlightened + of the strangers, above the gross and sensual pursuits of their + countrymen, more piously exercised the right of conquest in the search and + seizure of the relics of the saints. <a href="#linkBnote-101" + name="linkBnoteref-101" id="linkBnoteref-101">101</a> Immense was the + supply of heads and bones, crosses and images, that were scattered by this + revolution over the churches of Europe; and such was the increase of + pilgrimage and oblation, that no branch, perhaps, of more lucrative + plunder was imported from the East. <a href="#linkBnote-102" + name="linkBnoteref-102" id="linkBnoteref-102">102</a> Of the writings of + antiquity, many that still existed in the twelfth century, are now lost. + But the pilgrims were not solicitous to save or transport the volumes of + an unknown tongue: the perishable substance of paper or parchment can only + be preserved by the multiplicity of copies; the literature of the Greeks + had almost centred in the metropolis; and, without computing the extent of + our loss, we may drop a tear over the libraries that have perished in the + triple fire of Constantinople. <a href="#linkBnote-103" + name="linkBnoteref-103" id="linkBnoteref-103">103</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-93" id="linkBnote-93"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 93 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-93">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas uses very harsh + expressions, par agrammatoiV BarbaroiV, kai teleon analfabhtoiV, + (Fragment, apud Fabric. Bibliot. Græc. tom. vi. p. 414.) This reproach, it + is true, applies most strongly to their ignorance of Greek and of Homer. + In their own language, the Latins of the xiith and xiiith centuries were + not destitute of literature. See Harris's Philological Inquiries, p. iii. + c. 9, 10, 11.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-94" id="linkBnote-94"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 94 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-94">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas was of Chonæ in + Phrygia, (the old Colossæ of St. Paul:) he raised himself to the honors of + senator, judge of the veil, and great logothete; beheld the fall of the + empire, retired to Nice, and composed an elaborate history from the death + of Alexius Comnenus to the reign of Henry.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-95" id="linkBnote-95"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 95 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-95">return</a>)<br /> [ A manuscript of Nicetas + in the Bodleian library contains this curious fragment on the statues of + Constantinople, which fraud, or shame, or rather carelessness, has dropped + in the common editions. It is published by Fabricius, (Bibliot. Græc. tom. + vi. p. 405—416,) and immoderately praised by the late ingenious Mr. + Harris of Salisbury, (Philological Inquiries, p. iii. c. 5, p. 301—312.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-96" id="linkBnote-96"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 96 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-96">return</a>)<br /> [ To illustrate the statue + of Hercules, Mr. Harris quotes a Greek epigram, and engraves a beautiful + gem, which does not, however, copy the attitude of the statue: in the + latter, Hercules had not his club, and his right leg and arm were + extended.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-97" id="linkBnote-97"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 97 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-97">return</a>)<br /> [ I transcribe these + proportions, which appear to me inconsistent with each other; and may + possibly show, that the boasted taste of Nicetas was no more than + affectation and vanity.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-98" id="linkBnote-98"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 98 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-98">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas in Isaaco Angelo + et Alexio, c. 3, p. 359. The Latin editor very properly observes, that the + historian, in his bombast style, produces ex pulice elephantem.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-99" id="linkBnote-99"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 99 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-99">return</a>)<br /> [ In two passages of + Nicetas (edit. Paris, p. 360. Fabric. p. 408) the Latins are branded with + the lively reproach of oi tou kalou anerastoi barbaroi, and their avarice + of brass is clearly expressed. Yet the Venetians had the merit of removing + four bronze horses from Constantinople to the place of St. Mark, (Sanuto, + Vite del Dogi, in Muratori, Script. Rerum Italicarum, tom. xxii. p. 534.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-100" id="linkBnote-100"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 100 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-100">return</a>)<br /> [ Winckelman, Hist. de + l'Art. tom. iii. p. 269, 270.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-101" id="linkBnote-101"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 101 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-101">return</a>)<br /> [ See the pious robbery + of the abbot Martin, who transferred a rich cargo to his monastery of + Paris, diocese of Basil, (Gunther, Hist. C. P. c. 19, 23, 24.) Yet in + secreting this booty, the saint incurred an excommunication, and perhaps + broke his oath. (Compare Wilken vol. v. p. 308.—M.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-102" id="linkBnote-102"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 102 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-102">return</a>)<br /> [ Fleury, Hist. Eccles + tom. xvi. p. 139—145.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkBnote-103" id="linkBnote-103"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 103 (<a href="#linkBnoteref-103">return</a>)<br /> [ I shall conclude this + chapter with the notice of a modern history, which illustrates the taking + of Constantinople by the Latins; but which has fallen somewhat late into + my hands. Paolo Ramusio, the son of the compiler of Voyages, was directed + by the senate of Venice to write the history of the conquest: and this + order, which he received in his youth, he executed in a mature age, by an + elegant Latin work, de Bello Constantinopolitano et Imperatoribus Comnenis + per Gallos et Venetos restitutis, (Venet. 1635, in folio.) Ramusio, or + Rhamnusus, transcribes and translates, sequitur ad unguem, a MS. of + Villehardouin, which he possessed; but he enriches his narrative with + Greek and Latin materials, and we are indebted to him for a correct state + of the fleet, the names of the fifty Venetian nobles who commanded the + galleys of the republic, and the patriot opposition of Pantaleon Barbus to + the choice of the doge for emperor.] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> ======================= <a name="linkC2HCH0001" + id="linkC2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXI: Partition Of The Empire By The French And Venetians.—Part + I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Partition Of The Empire By The French And Venetians,—Five + Latin Emperors Of The Houses Of Flanders And Courtenay.— + Their Wars Against The Bulgarians And Greeks.—Weakness And + Poverty Of The Latin Empire.—Recovery Of Constantinople By + The Greeks.—General Consequences Of The Crusades. +</pre> + <p> + After the death of the lawful princes, the French and Venetians, confident + of justice and victory, agreed to divide and regulate their future + possessions. <a href="#linkCnote-1" name="linkCnoteref-1" + id="linkCnoteref-1">1</a> It was stipulated by treaty, that twelve + electors, six of either nation, should be nominated; that a majority + should choose the emperor of the East; and that, if the votes were equal, + the decision of chance should ascertain the successful candidate. To him, + with all the titles and prerogatives of the Byzantine throne, they + assigned the two palaces of Boucoleon and Blachernæ, with a fourth part of + the Greek monarchy. It was defined that the three remaining portions + should be equally shared between the republic of Venice and the barons of + France; that each feudatory, with an honorable exception for the doge, + should acknowledge and perform the duties of homage and military service + to the supreme head of the empire; that the nation which gave an emperor, + should resign to their brethren the choice of a patriarch; and that the + pilgrims, whatever might be their impatience to visit the Holy Land, + should devote another year to the conquest and defence of the Greek + provinces. After the conquest of Constantinople by the Latins, the treaty + was confirmed and executed; and the first and most important step was the + creation of an emperor. The six electors of the French nation were all + ecclesiastics, the abbot of Loces, the archbishop elect of Acre in + Palestine, and the bishops of Troyes, Soissons, Halberstadt, and + Bethlehem, the last of whom exercised in the camp the office of pope's + legate: their profession and knowledge were respectable; and as <i>they</i> + could not be the objects, they were best qualified to be the authors of + the choice. The six Venetians were the principal servants of the state, + and in this list the noble families of Querini and Contarini are still + proud to discover their ancestors. The twelve assembled in the chapel of + the palace; and after the solemn invocation of the Holy Ghost, they + proceeded to deliberate and vote. A just impulse of respect and gratitude + prompted them to crown the virtues of the doge; his wisdom had inspired + their enterprise; and the most youthful knights might envy and applaud the + exploits of blindness and age. But the patriot Dandolo was devoid of all + personal ambition, and fully satisfied that he had been judged worthy to + reign. His nomination was overruled by the Venetians themselves: his + countrymen, and perhaps his friends, <a href="#linkCnote-2" + name="linkCnoteref-2" id="linkCnoteref-2">2</a> represented, with the + eloquence of truth, the mischiefs that might arise to national freedom and + the common cause, from the union of two incompatible characters, of the + first magistrate of a republic and the emperor of the East. The exclusion + of the doge left room for the more equal merits of Boniface and Baldwin; + and at their names all meaner candidates respectfully withdrew. The + marquis of Montferrat was recommended by his mature age and fair + reputation, by the choice of the adventurers, and the wishes of the + Greeks; nor can I believe that Venice, the mistress of the sea, could be + seriously apprehensive of a petty lord at the foot of the Alps. <a + href="#linkCnote-3" name="linkCnoteref-3" id="linkCnoteref-3">3</a> But + the count of Flanders was the chief of a wealthy and warlike people: he + was valiant, pious, and chaste; in the prime of life, since he was only + thirty-two years of age; a descendant of Charlemagne, a cousin of the king + of France, and a compeer of the prelates and barons who had yielded with + reluctance to the command of a foreigner. Without the chapel, these + barons, with the doge and marquis at their head, expected the decision of + the twelve electors. It was announced by the bishop of Soissons, in the + name of his colleagues: "Ye have sworn to obey the prince whom we should + choose: by our unanimous suffrage, Baldwin count of Flanders and Hainault + is now your sovereign, and the emperor of the East." He was saluted with + loud applause, and the proclamation was reechoed through the city by the + joy of the Latins, and the trembling adulation of the Greeks. Boniface was + the first to kiss the hand of his rival, and to raise him on the buckler: + and Baldwin was transported to the cathedral, and solemnly invested with + the purple buskins. At the end of three weeks he was crowned by the + legate, in the vacancy of the patriarch; but the Venetian clergy soon + filled the chapter of St. Sophia, seated Thomas Morosini on the + ecclesiastical throne, and employed every art to perpetuate in their own + nation the honors and benefices of the Greek church. <a href="#linkCnote-4" + name="linkCnoteref-4" id="linkCnoteref-4">4</a> Without delay the + successor of Constantine instructed Palestine, France, and Rome, of this + memorable revolution. To Palestine he sent, as a trophy, the gates of + Constantinople, and the chain of the harbor; <a href="#linkCnote-5" + name="linkCnoteref-5" id="linkCnoteref-5">5</a> and adopted, from the + Assise of Jerusalem, the laws or customs best adapted to a French colony + and conquest in the East. In his epistles, the natives of France are + encouraged to swell that colony, and to secure that conquest, to people a + magnificent city and a fertile land, which will reward the labors both of + the priest and the soldier. He congratulates the Roman pontiff on the + restoration of his authority in the East; invites him to extinguish the + Greek schism by his presence in a general council; and implores his + blessing and forgiveness for the disobedient pilgrims. Prudence and + dignity are blended in the answer of Innocent. <a href="#linkCnote-6" + name="linkCnoteref-6" id="linkCnoteref-6">6</a> In the subversion of the + Byzantine empire, he arraigns the vices of man, and adores the providence + of God; the conquerors will be absolved or condemned by their future + conduct; the validity of their treaty depends on the judgment of St. + Peter; but he inculcates their most sacred duty of establishing a just + subordination of obedience and tribute, from the Greeks to the Latins, + from the magistrate to the clergy, and from the clergy to the pope. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-1" id="linkCnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ See the original treaty of + partition, in the Venetian Chronicle of Andrew Dandolo, p. 326—330, + and the subsequent election in Ville hardouin, No. 136—140, with + Ducange in his Observations, and the book of his Histoire de + Constantinople sous l'Empire des François.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-2" id="linkCnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ After mentioning the + nomination of the doge by a French elector his kinsman Andrew Dandolo + approves his exclusion, quidam Venetorum fidelis et nobilis senex, usus + oratione satis probabili, &c., which has been embroidered by modern + writers from Blondus to Le Beau.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-3" id="linkCnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas, (p. 384,) with + the vain ignorance of a Greek, describes the marquis of Montferrat as a <i>maritime</i> + power. Dampardian de oikeisqai paralion. Was he deceived by the Byzantine + theme of Lombardy which extended along the coast of Calabria?] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-4" id="linkCnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ They exacted an oath from + Thomas Morosini to appoint no canons of St. Sophia the lawful electors, + except Venetians who had lived ten years at Venice, &c. But the + foreign clergy was envious, the pope disapproved this national monopoly, + and of the six Latin patriarchs of Constantinople, only the first and the + last were Venetians.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-5" id="linkCnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas, p. 383.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-6" id="linkCnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ The Epistles of Innocent + III. are a rich fund for the ecclesiastical and civil institution of the + Latin empire of Constantinople; and the most important of these epistles + (of which the collection in 2 vols. in folio is published by Stephen + Baluze) are inserted in his Gesta, in Muratori, Script. Rerum Italicarum, + tom. iii. p. l. c. 94—105.] + </p> + <p> + In the division of the Greek provinces, <a href="#linkCnote-7" + name="linkCnoteref-7" id="linkCnoteref-7">7</a> the share of the Venetians + was more ample than that of the Latin emperor. No more than one fourth was + appropriated to his domain; a clear moiety of the remainder was reserved + for Venice; and the other moiety was distributed among the adventurers of + France and Lombardy. The venerable Dandolo was proclaimed despot of + Romania, and invested after the Greek fashion with the purple buskins. He + ended at Constantinople his long and glorious life; and if the prerogative + was personal, the title was used by his successors till the middle of the + fourteenth century, with the singular, though true, addition of lords of + one fourth and a half of the Roman empire. <a href="#linkCnote-8" + name="linkCnoteref-8" id="linkCnoteref-8">8</a> The doge, a slave of + state, was seldom permitted to depart from the helm of the republic; but + his place was supplied by the <i>bail</i>, or regent, who exercised a + supreme jurisdiction over the colony of Venetians: they possessed three of + the eight quarters of the city; and his independent tribunal was composed + of six judges, four counsellors, two chamberlains two fiscal advocates, + and a constable. Their long experience of the Eastern trade enabled them + to select their portion with discernment: they had rashly accepted the + dominion and defence of Adrianople; but it was the more reasonable aim of + their policy to form a chain of factories, and cities, and islands, along + the maritime coast, from the neighborhood of Ragusa to the Hellespont and + the Bosphorus. The labor and cost of such extensive conquests exhausted + their treasury: they abandoned their maxims of government, adopted a + feudal system, and contented themselves with the homage of their nobles, + <a href="#linkCnote-9" name="linkCnoteref-9" id="linkCnoteref-9">9</a> for + the possessions which these private vassals undertook to reduce and + maintain. And thus it was that the family of Sanut acquired the duchy of + Naxos, which involved the greatest part of the archipelago. For the price + of ten thousand marks, the republic purchased of the marquis of Montferrat + the fertile Island of Crete or Candia, with the ruins of a hundred cities; + <a href="#linkCnote-10" name="linkCnoteref-10" id="linkCnoteref-10">10</a> + but its improvement was stinted by the proud and narrow spirit of an + aristocracy; <a href="#linkCnote-11" name="linkCnoteref-11" + id="linkCnoteref-11">11</a> and the wisest senators would confess that the + sea, not the land, was the treasury of St. Mark. In the moiety of the + adventurers the marquis Boniface might claim the most liberal reward; and, + besides the Isle of Crete, his exclusion from the throne was compensated + by the royal title and the provinces beyond the Hellespont. But he + prudently exchanged that distant and difficult conquest for the kingdom of + Thessalonica Macedonia, twelve days' journey from the capital, where he + might be supported by the neighboring powers of his brother-in-law the + king of Hungary. His progress was hailed by the voluntary or reluctant + acclamations of the natives; and Greece, the proper and ancient Greece, + again received a Latin conqueror, <a href="#linkCnote-12" + name="linkCnoteref-12" id="linkCnoteref-12">12</a> who trod with + indifference that classic ground. He viewed with a careless eye the + beauties of the valley of Tempe; traversed with a cautious step the + straits of Thermopylæ; occupied the unknown cities of Thebes, Athens, and + Argos; and assaulted the fortifications of Corinth and Napoli, <a + href="#linkCnote-13" name="linkCnoteref-13" id="linkCnoteref-13">13</a> + which resisted his arms. The lots of the Latin pilgrims were regulated by + chance, or choice, or subsequent exchange; and they abused, with + intemperate joy, their triumph over the lives and fortunes of a great + people. After a minute survey of the provinces, they weighed in the scales + of avarice the revenue of each district, the advantage of the situation, + and the ample or scanty supplies for the maintenance of soldiers and + horses. Their presumption claimed and divided the long-lost dependencies + of the Roman sceptre: the Nile and Euphrates rolled through their + imaginary realms; and happy was the warrior who drew for his prize the + palace of the Turkish sultan of Iconium. <a href="#linkCnote-14" + name="linkCnoteref-14" id="linkCnoteref-14">14</a> I shall not descend to + the pedigree of families and the rent-roll of estates, but I wish to + specify that the counts of Blois and St. Pol were invested with the duchy + of Nice and the lordship of Demotica: <a href="#linkCnote-15" + name="linkCnoteref-15" id="linkCnoteref-15">15</a> the principal fiefs + were held by the service of constable, chamberlain, cup-bearer, butler, + and chief cook; and our historian, Jeffrey of Villehardouin, obtained a + fair establishment on the banks of the Hebrus, and united the double + office of marshal of Champagne and Romania. At the head of his knights and + archers, each baron mounted on horseback to secure the possession of his + share, and their first efforts were generally successful. But the public + force was weakened by their dispersion; and a thousand quarrels must arise + under a law, and among men, whose sole umpire was the sword. Within three + months after the conquest of Constantinople, the emperor and the king of + Thessalonica drew their hostile followers into the field; they were + reconciled by the authority of the doge, the advice of the marshal, and + the firm freedom of their peers. <a href="#linkCnote-16" + name="linkCnoteref-16" id="linkCnoteref-16">16</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-7" id="linkCnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ In the treaty of + partition, most of the names are corrupted by the scribes: they might be + restored, and a good map, suited to the last age of the Byzantine empire, + would be an improvement of geography. But, alas D'Anville is no more!] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-8" id="linkCnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ Their style was dominus + quartæ partis et dimidiæ imperii Romani, till Giovanni Dolfino, who was + elected doge in the year of 1356, (Sanuto, p. 530, 641.) For the + government of Constantinople, see Ducange, Histoire de C. P. i. 37.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-9" id="linkCnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducange (Hist. de C. P. + ii. 6) has marked the conquests made by the state or nobles of Venice of + the Islands of Candia, Corfu, Cephalonia, Zante, Naxos, Paros, Melos, + Andros, Mycone, Syro, Cea, and Lemnos.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-10" id="linkCnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ Boniface sold the Isle + of Candia, August 12, A.D. 1204. See the act in Sanuto, p. 533: but I + cannot understand how it could be his mother's portion, or how she could + be the daughter of an emperor Alexius.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-11" id="linkCnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ In the year 1212, the + doge Peter Zani sent a colony to Candia, drawn from every quarter of + Venice. But in their savage manners and frequent rebellions, the Candiots + may be compared to the Corsicans under the yoke of Genoa; and when I + compare the accounts of Belon and Tournefort, I cannot discern much + difference between the Venetian and the Turkish island.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-12" id="linkCnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ Villehardouin (No. 159, + 160, 173—177) and Nicetas (p. 387—394) describe the expedition + into Greece of the marquis Boniface. The Choniate might derive his + information from his brother Michael, archbishop of Athens, whom he paints + as an orator, a statesman, and a saint. His encomium of Athens, and the + description of Tempe, should be published from the Bodleian MS. of + Nicetas, (Fabric. Bibliot. Græc. tom. vi. p. 405,) and would have deserved + Mr. Harris's inquiries.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-13" id="linkCnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ Napoli de Romania, or + Nauplia, the ancient seaport of Argos, is still a place of strength and + consideration, situate on a rocky peninsula, with a good harbor, + (Chandler's Travels into Greece, p. 227.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-14" id="linkCnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ I have softened the + expression of Nicetas, who strives to expose the presumption of the + Franks. See the Rebus post C. P. expugnatam, p. 375—384.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-15" id="linkCnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ A city surrounded by the + River Hebrus, and six leagues to the south of Adrianople, received from + its double wall the Greek name of Didymoteichos, insensibly corrupted into + Demotica and Dimot. I have preferred the more convenient and modern + appellation of Demotica. This place was the last Turkish residence of + Charles XII.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-16" id="linkCnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ Their quarrel is told by + Villehardouin (No. 146—158) with the spirit of freedom. The merit + and reputation of the marshal are so acknowledged by the Greek historian + (p. 387) mega para touV tvn Dauinwn dunamenou strateumasi: unlike some + modern heroes, whose exploits are only visible in their own memoirs. * + Note: William de Champlite, brother of the count of Dijon, assumed the + title of Prince of Achaia: on the death of his brother, he returned, with + regret, to France, to assume his paternal inheritance, and left + Villehardouin his "<i>bailli</i>," on condition that if he did not return + within a year Villehardouin was to retain an investiture. Brosset's Add. + to Le Beau, vol. xvii. p. 200. M. Brosset adds, from the Greek chronicler + edited by M. Buchon, the somewhat unknightly trick by which Villehardouin + disembarrassed himself from the troublesome claim of Robert, the cousin of + the count of Dijon. to the succession. He contrived that Robert should + arrive just fifteen days too late; and with the general concurrence of the + assembled knights was himself invested with the principality. Ibid. p. + 283. M.] + </p> + <p> + Two fugitives, who had reigned at Constantinople, still asserted the title + of emperor; and the subjects of their fallen throne might be moved to pity + by the misfortunes of the elder Alexius, or excited to revenge by the + spirit of Mourzoufle. A domestic alliance, a common interest, a similar + guilt, and the merit of extinguishing his enemies, a brother and a nephew, + induced the more recent usurper to unite with the former the relics of his + power. Mourzoufle was received with smiles and honors in the camp of his + father Alexius; but the wicked can never love, and should rarely trust, + their fellow-criminals; he was seized in the bath, deprived of his eyes, + stripped of his troops and treasures, and turned out to wander an object + of horror and contempt to those who with more propriety could hate, and + with more justice could punish, the assassin of the emperor Isaac and his + son. As the tyrant, pursued by fear or remorse, was stealing over to Asia, + he was seized by the Latins of Constantinople, and condemned, after an + open trial, to an ignominious death. His judges debated the mode of his + execution, the axe, the wheel, or the stake; and it was resolved that + Mourzoufle <a href="#linkCnote-17" name="linkCnoteref-17" + id="linkCnoteref-17">17</a> should ascend the Theodosian column, a pillar + of white marble of one hundred and forty-seven feet in height. <a + href="#linkCnote-18" name="linkCnoteref-18" id="linkCnoteref-18">18</a> + From the summit he was cast down headlong, and dashed in pieces on the + pavement, in the presence of innumerable spectators, who filled the forum + of Taurus, and admired the accomplishment of an old prediction, which was + explained by this singular event. <a href="#linkCnote-19" + name="linkCnoteref-19" id="linkCnoteref-19">19</a> The fate of Alexius is + less tragical: he was sent by the marquis a captive to Italy, and a gift + to the king of the Romans; but he had not much to applaud his fortune, if + the sentence of imprisonment and exile were changed from a fortress in the + Alps to a monastery in Asia. But his daughter, before the national + calamity, had been given in marriage to a young hero who continued the + succession, and restored the throne, of the Greek princes. <a + href="#linkCnote-20" name="linkCnoteref-20" id="linkCnoteref-20">20</a> + The valor of Theodore Lascaris was signalized in the two sieges of + Constantinople. After the flight of Mourzoufle, when the Latins were + already in the city, he offered himself as their emperor to the soldiers + and people; and his ambition, which might be virtuous, was undoubtedly + brave. Could he have infused a soul into the multitude, they might have + crushed the strangers under their feet: their abject despair refused his + aid; and Theodore retired to breathe the air of freedom in Anatolia, + beyond the immediate view and pursuit of the conquerors. Under the title, + at first of despot, and afterwards of emperor, he drew to his standard the + bolder spirits, who were fortified against slavery by the contempt of + life; and as every means was lawful for the public safety implored without + scruple the alliance of the Turkish sultan Nice, where Theodore + established his residence, Prusa and Philadelphia, Smyrna and Ephesus, + opened their gates to their deliverer: he derived strength and reputation + from his victories, and even from his defeats; and the successor of + Constantine preserved a fragment of the empire from the banks of the + Mæander to the suburbs of Nicomedia, and at length of Constantinople. + Another portion, distant and obscure, was possessed by the lineal heir of + the Comneni, a son of the virtuous Manuel, a grandson of the tyrant + Andronicus. His name was Alexius; and the epithet of great <a + href="#linkCnote-201" name="linkCnoteref-201" id="linkCnoteref-201">201</a> + was applied perhaps to his stature, rather than to his exploits. By the + indulgence of the Angeli, he was appointed governor or duke of Trebizond: + <a href="#linkCnote-21" name="linkCnoteref-21" id="linkCnoteref-21">21</a> + <a href="#linkCnote-211" name="linkCnoteref-211" id="linkCnoteref-211">211</a> + his birth gave him ambition, the revolution independence; and, without + changing his title, he reigned in peace from Sinope to the Phasis, along + the coast of the Black Sea. His nameless son and successor <a + href="#linkCnote-212" name="linkCnoteref-212" id="linkCnoteref-212">212</a> + is described as the vassal of the sultan, whom he served with two hundred + lances: that Comnenian prince was no more than duke of Trebizond, and the + title of emperor was first assumed by the pride and envy of the grandson + of Alexius. In the West, a third fragment was saved from the common + shipwreck by Michael, a bastard of the house of Angeli, who, before the + revolution, had been known as a hostage, a soldier, and a rebel. His + flight from the camp of the marquis Boniface secured his freedom; by his + marriage with the governor's daughter, he commanded the important place of + Durazzo, assumed the title of despot, and founded a strong and conspicuous + principality in Epirus, Ætolia, and Thessaly, which have ever been peopled + by a warlike race. The Greeks, who had offered their service to their new + sovereigns, were excluded by the haughty Latins <a href="#linkCnote-22" + name="linkCnoteref-22" id="linkCnoteref-22">22</a> from all civil and + military honors, as a nation born to tremble and obey. Their resentment + prompted them to show that they might have been useful friends, since they + could be dangerous enemies: their nerves were braced by adversity: + whatever was learned or holy, whatever was noble or valiant, rolled away + into the independent states of Trebizond, Epirus, and Nice; and a single + patrician is marked by the ambiguous praise of attachment and loyalty to + the Franks. The vulgar herd of the cities and the country would have + gladly submitted to a mild and regular servitude; and the transient + disorders of war would have been obliterated by some years of industry and + peace. But peace was banished, and industry was crushed, in the disorders + of the feudal system. The <i>Roman</i> emperors of Constantinople, if they + were endowed with abilities, were armed with power for the protection of + their subjects: their laws were wise, and their administration was simple. + The Latin throne was filled by a titular prince, the chief, and often the + servant, of his licentious confederates; the fiefs of the empire, from a + kingdom to a castle, were held and ruled by the sword of the barons; and + their discord, poverty, and ignorance, extended the ramifications of + tyranny to the most sequestered villages. The Greeks were oppressed by the + double weight of the priests, who were invested with temporal power, and of + the soldier, who was inflamed by fanatic hatred; and the insuperable bar + of religion and language forever separated the stranger and the native. As + long as the crusaders were united at Constantinople, the memory of their + conquest, and the terror of their arms, imposed silence on the captive + land: their dispersion betrayed the smallness of their numbers and the + defects of their discipline; and some failures and mischances revealed the + secret, that they were not invincible. As the fears of the Greeks abated, + their hatred increased. They murdered; they conspired; and before a year + of slavery had elapsed, they implored, or accepted, the succor of a + Barbarian, whose power they had felt, and whose gratitude they trusted. <a + href="#linkCnote-23" name="linkCnoteref-23" id="linkCnoteref-23">23</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-17" id="linkCnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ See the fate of + Mourzoufle in Nicetas, (p. 393,) Villehardouin, (No. 141—145, 163,) + and Guntherus, (c. 20, 21.) Neither the marshal nor the monk afford a + grain of pity for a tyrant or rebel, whose punishment, however, was more + unexampled than his crime.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-18" id="linkCnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ The column of Arcadius, + which represents in basso relievo his victories, or those of his father + Theodosius, is still extant at Constantinople. It is described and + measured, Gyllius, (Topograph. iv. 7,) Banduri, (ad l. i. Antiquit. C. P. + p. 507, &c.,) and Tournefort, (Voyage du Levant, tom. ii. lettre xii. + p. 231.) (Compare Wilken, Cnote, vol. v p. 388.—M.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-19" id="linkCnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ The nonsense of Gunther + and the modern Greeks concerning this <i>columna fatidica</i>, is unworthy + of notice; but it is singular enough, that fifty years before the Latin + conquest, the poet Tzetzes, (Chiliad, ix. 277) relates the dream of a + matron, who saw an army in the forum, and a man sitting on the column, + clapping his hands, and uttering a loud exclamation. * Note: We read in + the "Chronicle of the Conquest of Constantinople, and of the Establishment + of the French in the Morea," translated by J A Buchon, Paris, 1825, p. 64 + that Leo VI., called the Philosopher, had prophesied that a perfidious + emperor should be precipitated from the top of this column. The crusaders + considered themselves under an obligation to fulfil this prophecy. + Brosset, Cnote on Le Beau, vol. xvii. p. 180. M Brosset announces that a + complete edition of this work, of which the original Greek of the first + book only has been published by M. Buchon in preparation, to form part of + the new series of the Byzantine historian.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-20" id="linkCnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ The dynasties of Nice, + Trebizond, and Epirus (of which Nicetas saw the origin without much + pleasure or hope) are learnedly explored, and clearly represented, in the + Familiæ Byzantinæ of Ducange.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-201" id="linkCnote-201"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 201 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-201">return</a>)<br /> [ This was a title, not + a personal appellation. Joinville speaks of the "Grant Comnenie, et sire + de Traffezzontes." Fallmerayer, p. 82.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-21" id="linkCnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ Except some facts in + Pachymer and Nicephorus Gregoras, which will hereafter be used, the + Byzantine writers disdain to speak of the empire of Trebizond, or + principality of the <i>Lazi</i>; and among the Latins, it is conspicuous + only in the romancers of the xivth or xvth centuries. Yet the + indefatigable Ducange has dug out (Fam. Byz. p. 192) two authentic + passages in Vincent of Beauvais (l. xxxi. c. 144) and the prothonotary + Ogerius, (apud Wading, A.D. 1279, No. 4.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-211" id="linkCnote-211"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 211 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-211">return</a>)<br /> [ On the revolutions of + Trebizond under the later empire down to this period, see Fallmerayer, + Geschichte des Kaiserthums von Trapezunt, ch. iii. The wife of Manuel fled + with her infant sons and her treasure from the relentless enmity of Isaac + Angelus. Fallmerayer conjectures that her arrival enabled the Greeks of + that region to make head against the formidable Thamar, the Georgian queen + of Teflis, p. 42. They gradually formed a dominion on the banks of the + Phasis, which the distracted government of the Angeli neglected or were + unable to suppress. On the capture of Constantinople by the Latins, + Alexius was joined by many noble fugitives from Constantinople. He had + always retained the names of Cæsar and BasileuV. He now fixed the seat of + his empire at Trebizond; but he had never abandoned his pretensions to the + Byzantine throne, ch. iii. Fallmerayer appears to make out a triumphant + case as to the assumption of the royal title by Alexius the First. Since + the publication of M. Fallmerayer's work, (München, 1827,) M. Tafel has + published, at the end of the opuscula of Eustathius, a curious chronicle + of Trebizond by Michael Panaretas, (Frankfort, 1832.) It gives the + succession of the emperors, and some other curious circumstances of their + wars with the several Mahometan powers.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-212" id="linkCnote-212"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 212 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-212">return</a>)<br /> [ The successor of + Alexius was his son-in-law Andronicus I., of the Comnenian family, + surnamed Gidon. There were five successions between Alexius and John, + according to Fallmerayer, p. 103. The troops of Trebizond fought in the + army of Dschelaleddin, the Karismian, against Alaleddin, the Seljukian + sultan of Roum, but as allies rather than vassals, p. 107. It was after + the defeat of Dschelaleddin that they furnished their contingent to + Alai-eddin. Fallmerayer struggles in vain to mitigate this mark of the + subjection of the Comneni to the sultan. p. 116.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-22" id="linkCnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ The portrait of the + French Latins is drawn in Nicetas by the hand of prejudice and resentment: + ouden tvn allwn eqnvn eiV ''AreoV?rga parasumbeblhsqai sjisin hneiconto + all' oude tiV tvn caritwn h tvn?mousvn para toiV barbaroiV toutoiV + epexenizeto, kai para touto oimai thn jusin hsan anhmeroi, kai ton xolon + eixon tou logou prstreconta. [P. 791 Ed. Bek.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-23" id="linkCnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ I here begin to use, + with freedom and confidence, the eight books of the Histoire de C. P. sous + l'Empire des François, which Ducange has given as a supplement to + Villehardouin; and which, in a barbarous style, deserves the praise of an + original and classic work.] + </p> + <p> + The Latin conquerors had been saluted with a solemn and early embassy from + John, or Joannice, or Calo-John, the revolted chief of the Bulgarians and + Walachians. He deemed himself their brother, as the votary of the Roman + pontiff, from whom he had received the regal title and a holy banner; and + in the subversion of the Greek monarchy, he might aspire to the name of + their friend and accomplice. But Calo-John was astonished to find, that + the Count of Flanders had assumed the pomp and pride of the successors of + Constantine; and his ambassadors were dismissed with a haughty message, + that the rebel must deserve a pardon, by touching with his forehead the + footstool of the Imperial throne. His resentment <a href="#linkCnote-24" + name="linkCnoteref-24" id="linkCnoteref-24">24</a> would have exhaled in + acts of violence and blood: his cooler policy watched the rising + discontent of the Greeks; affected a tender concern for their sufferings; + and promised, that their first struggles for freedom should be supported + by his person and kingdom. The conspiracy was propagated by national + hatred, the firmest band of association and secrecy: the Greeks were + impatient to sheathe their daggers in the breasts of the victorious + strangers; but the execution was prudently delayed, till Henry, the + emperor's brother, had transported the flower of his troops beyond the + Hellespont. Most of the towns and villages of Thrace were true to the + moment and the signal; and the Latins, without arms or suspicion, were + slaughtered by the vile and merciless revenge of their slaves. From + Demotica, the first scene of the massacre, the surviving vassals of the + count of St. Pol escaped to Adrianople; but the French and Venetians, who + occupied that city, were slain or expelled by the furious multitude: the + garrisons that could effect their retreat fell back on each other towards + the metropolis; and the fortresses, that separately stood against the + rebels, were ignorant of each other's and of their sovereign's fate. The + voice of fame and fear announced the revolt of the Greeks and the rapid + approach of their Bulgarian ally; and Calo-John, not depending on the + forces of his own kingdom, had drawn from the Scythian wilderness a body + of fourteen thousand Comans, who drank, as it was said, the blood of their + captives, and sacrificed the Christians on the altars of their gods. <a + href="#linkCnote-25" name="linkCnoteref-25" id="linkCnoteref-25">25</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-24" id="linkCnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ In Calo-John's answer to + the pope we may find his claims and complaints, (Gesta Innocent III. c. + 108, 109:) he was cherished at Rome as the prodigal son.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-25" id="linkCnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ The Comans were a Tartar + or Turkman horde, which encamped in the xiith and xiiith centuries on the + verge of Moldavia. The greater part were pagans, but some were Mahometans, + and the whole horde was converted to Christianity (A.D. 1370) by Lewis, + king of Hungary.] + </p> + <p> + Alarmed by this sudden and growing danger, the emperor despatched a swift + messenger to recall Count Henry and his troops; and had Baldwin expected + the return of his gallant brother, with a supply of twenty thousand + Armenians, he might have encountered the invader with equal numbers and a + decisive superiority of arms and discipline. But the spirit of chivalry + could seldom discriminate caution from cowardice; and the emperor took the + field with a hundred and forty knights, and their train of archers and + sergeants. The marshal, who dissuaded and obeyed, led the vanguard in + their march to Adrianople; the main body was commanded by the count of + Blois; the aged doge of Venice followed with the rear; and their scanty + numbers were increased from all sides by the fugitive Latins. They + undertook to besiege the rebels of Adrianople; and such was the pious + tendency of the crusades that they employed the holy week in pillaging the + country for their subsistence, and in framing engines for the destruction + of their fellow-Christians. But the Latins were soon interrupted and + alarmed by the light cavalry of the Comans, who boldly skirmished to the + edge of their imperfect lines: and a proclamation was issued by the + marshal of Romania, that, on the trumpet's sound, the cavalry should mount + and form; but that none, under pain of death, should abandon themselves to + a desultory and dangerous pursuit. This wise injunction was first + disobeyed by the count of Blois, who involved the emperor in his rashness + and ruin. The Comans, of the Parthian or Tartar school, fled before their + first charge; but after a career of two leagues, when the knights and + their horses were almost breathless, they suddenly turned, rallied, and + encompassed the heavy squadrons of the Franks. The count was slain on the + field; the emperor was made prisoner; and if the one disdained to fly, if + the other refused to yield, their personal bravery made a poor atonement + for their ignorance, or neglect, of the duties of a general. <a + href="#linkCnote-26" name="linkCnoteref-26" id="linkCnoteref-26">26</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-26" id="linkCnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicetas, from ignorance + or malice, imputes the defeat to the cowardice of Dandolo, (p. 383;) but + Villehardouin shares his own glory with his venerable friend, qui viels + home ére et gote ne veoit, mais mult ére sages et preus et vigueros, (No. + 193.) * Note: Gibbon appears to me to have misapprehended the passage of + Nicetas. He says, "that principal and subtlest mischief. that primary + cause of all the horrible miseries suffered by the <i>Romans</i>," i. e. + the Byzantines. It is an effusion of malicious triumph against the + Venetians, to whom he always ascribes the capture of Constantinople.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkC2HCH0002" id="linkC2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXI: Partition Of The Empire By The French And Venetians.—Part + II. + </h2> + <p> + Proud of his victory and his royal prize, the Bulgarian advanced to + relieve Adrianople and achieve the destruction of the Latins. They must + inevitably have been destroyed, if the marshal of Romania had not + displayed a cool courage and consummate skill; uncommon in all ages, but + most uncommon in those times, when war was a passion, rather than a + science. His grief and fears were poured into the firm and faithful bosom + of the doge; but in the camp he diffused an assurance of safety, which + could only be realized by the general belief. All day he maintained his + perilous station between the city and the Barbarians: Villehardouin + decamped in silence at the dead of night; and his masterly retreat of + three days would have deserved the praise of Xenophon and the ten + thousand. In the rear, the marshal supported the weight of the pursuit; in + the front, he moderated the impatience of the fugitives; and wherever the + Comans approached, they were repelled by a line of impenetrable spears. On + the third day, the weary troops beheld the sea, the solitary town of + Rodosta, <a href="#linkCnote-27" name="linkCnoteref-27" + id="linkCnoteref-27">27</a> and their friends, who had landed from the + Asiatic shore. They embraced, they wept; but they united their arms and + counsels; and in his brother's absence, Count Henry assumed the regency of + the empire, at once in a state of childhood and caducity. <a + href="#linkCnote-28" name="linkCnoteref-28" id="linkCnoteref-28">28</a> If + the Comans withdrew from the summer heats, seven thousand Latins, in the + hour of danger, deserted Constantinople, their brethren, and their vows. + Some partial success was overbalanced by the loss of one hundred and + twenty knights in the field of Rusium; and of the Imperial domain, no more + was left than the capital, with two or three adjacent fortresses on the + shores of Europe and Asia. The king of Bulgaria was resistless and + inexorable; and Calo-John respectfully eluded the demands of the pope, who + conjured his new proselyte to restore peace and the emperor to the + afflicted Latins. The deliverance of Baldwin was no longer, he said, in + the power of man: that prince had died in prison; and the manner of his + death is variously related by ignorance and credulity. The lovers of a + tragic legend will be pleased to hear, that the royal captive was tempted + by the amorous queen of the Bulgarians; that his chaste refusal exposed + him to the falsehood of a woman and the jealousy of a savage; that his + hands and feet were severed from his body; that his bleeding trunk was + cast among the carcasses of dogs and horses; and that he breathed three + days, before he was devoured by the birds of prey. <a href="#linkCnote-29" + name="linkCnoteref-29" id="linkCnoteref-29">29</a> About twenty years + afterwards, in a wood of the Netherlands, a hermit announced himself as + the true Baldwin, the emperor of Constantinople, and lawful sovereign of + Flanders. He related the wonders of his escape, his adventures, and his + penance, among a people prone to believe and to rebel; and, in the first + transport, Flanders acknowledged her long-lost sovereign. A short + examination before the French court detected the impostor, who was + punished with an ignominious death; but the Flemings still adhered to the + pleasing error; and the countess Jane is accused by the gravest historians + of sacrificing to her ambition the life of an unfortunate father. <a + href="#linkCnote-30" name="linkCnoteref-30" id="linkCnoteref-30">30</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-27" id="linkCnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ The truth of geography, + and the original text of Villehardouin, (No. 194,) place Rodosto three + days' journey (trois jornées) from Adrianople: but Vigenere, in his + version, has most absurdly substituted <i>trois heures</i>; and this + error, which is not corrected by Ducange has entrapped several moderns, + whose names I shall spare.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-28" id="linkCnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ The reign and end of + Baldwin are related by Villehardouin and Nicetas, (p. 386—416;) and + their omissions are supplied by Ducange in his Observations, and to the + end of his first book.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-29" id="linkCnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ After brushing away all + doubtful and improbable circumstances, we may prove the death of Baldwin, + 1. By the firm belief of the French barons, (Villehardouin, No. 230.) 2. + By the declaration of Calo-John himself, who excuses his not releasing the + captive emperor, quia debitum carnis exsolverat cum carcere teneretur, + (Gesta Innocent III. c. 109.) * Note: Compare Von Raumer. Geschichte der + Hohenstaufen, vol. ii. p. 237. Petitot, in his preface to Villehardouin in + the Collection des Mémoires, relatifs a l'Histoire de France, tom. i. p. + 85, expresses his belief in the first part of the "tragic legend."—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-30" id="linkCnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ See the story of this + impostor from the French and Flemish writers in Ducange, Hist. de C. P. + iii. 9; and the ridiculous fables that were believed by the monks of St. + Alban's, in Matthew Paris, Hist. Major, p. 271, 272.] + </p> + <p> + In all civilized hostility, a treaty is established for the exchange or + ransom of prisoners; and if their captivity be prolonged, their condition + is known, and they are treated according to their rank with humanity or + honor. But the savage Bulgarian was a stranger to the laws of war: his + prisons were involved in darkness and silence; and above a year elapsed + before the Latins could be assured of the death of Baldwin, before his + brother, the regent Henry, would consent to assume the title of emperor. + His moderation was applauded by the Greeks as an act of rare and + inimitable virtue. Their light and perfidious ambition was eager to seize + or anticipate the moment of a vacancy, while a law of succession, the + guardian both of the prince and people, was gradually defined and + confirmed in the hereditary monarchies of Europe. In the support of the + Eastern empire, Henry was gradually left without an associate, as the + heroes of the crusade retired from the world or from the war. The doge of + Venice, the venerable Dandolo, in the fulness of years and glory, sunk + into the grave. The marquis of Montferrat was slowly recalled from the + Peloponnesian war to the revenge of Baldwin and the defence of + Thessalonica. Some nice disputes of feudal homage and service were + reconciled in a personal interview between the emperor and the king; they + were firmly united by mutual esteem and the common danger; and their + alliance was sealed by the nuptials of Henry with the daughter of the + Italian prince. He soon deplored the loss of his friend and father. At the + persuasion of some faithful Greeks, Boniface made a bold and successful + inroad among the hills of Rhodope: the Bulgarians fled on his approach; + they assembled to harass his retreat. On the intelligence that his rear + was attacked, without waiting for any defensive armor, he leaped on + horseback, couched his lance, and drove the enemies before him; but in the + rash pursuit he was pierced with a mortal wound; and the head of the king + of Thessalonica was presented to Calo-John, who enjoyed the honors, + without the merit, of victory. It is here, at this melancholy event, that + the pen or the voice of Jeffrey of Villehardouin seems to drop or to + expire; <a href="#linkCnote-31" name="linkCnoteref-31" id="linkCnoteref-31">31</a> + and if he still exercised his military office of marshal of Romania, his + subsequent exploits are buried in oblivion. <a href="#linkCnote-32" + name="linkCnoteref-32" id="linkCnoteref-32">32</a> The character of Henry + was not unequal to his arduous situation: in the siege of Constantinople, + and beyond the Hellespont, he had deserved the fame of a valiant knight + and a skilful commander; and his courage was tempered with a degree of + prudence and mildness unknown to his impetuous brother. In the double war + against the Greeks of Asia and the Bulgarians of Europe, he was ever the + foremost on shipboard or on horseback; and though he cautiously provided + for the success of his arms, the drooping Latins were often roused by his + example to save and to second their fearless emperor. But such efforts, + and some supplies of men and money from France, were of less avail than + the errors, the cruelty, and death, of their most formidable adversary. + When the despair of the Greek subjects invited Calo-John as their + deliverer, they hoped that he would protect their liberty and adopt their + laws: they were soon taught to compare the degrees of national ferocity, + and to execrate the savage conqueror, who no longer dissembled his + intention of dispeopling Thrace, of demolishing the cities, and of + transplanting the inhabitants beyond the Danube. Many towns and villages + of Thrace were already evacuated: a heap of ruins marked the place of + Philippopolis, and a similar calamity was expected at Demotica and + Adrianople, by the first authors of the revolt. They raised a cry of grief + and repentance to the throne of Henry; the emperor alone had the + magnanimity to forgive and trust them. No more than four hundred knights, + with their sergeants and archers, could be assembled under his banner; and + with this slender force he fought <a href="#linkCnote-321" + name="linkCnoteref-321" id="linkCnoteref-321">321</a> and repulsed the + Bulgarian, who, besides his infantry, was at the head of forty thousand + horse. In this expedition, Henry felt the difference between a hostile and + a friendly country: the remaining cities were preserved by his arms; and + the savage, with shame and loss, was compelled to relinquish his prey. The + siege of Thessalonica was the last of the evils which Calo-John inflicted + or suffered: he was stabbed in the night in his tent; and the general, + perhaps the assassin, who found him weltering in his blood, ascribed the + blow, with general applause, to the lance of St. Demetrius. <a + href="#linkCnote-33" name="linkCnoteref-33" id="linkCnoteref-33">33</a> + After several victories, the prudence of Henry concluded an honorable + peace with the successor of the tyrant, and with the Greek princes of Nice + and Epirus. If he ceded some doubtful limits, an ample kingdom was + reserved for himself and his feudatories; and his reign, which lasted only + ten years, afforded a short interval of prosperity and peace. Far above + the narrow policy of Baldwin and Boniface, he freely intrusted to the + Greeks the most important offices of the state and army; and this + liberality of sentiment and practice was the more seasonable, as the + princes of Nice and Epirus had already learned to seduce and employ the + mercenary valor of the Latins. It was the aim of Henry to unite and reward + his deserving subjects, of every nation and language; but he appeared less + solicitous to accomplish the impracticable union of the two churches. + Pelagius, the pope's legate, who acted as the sovereign of Constantinople, + had interdicted the worship of the Greeks, and sternly imposed the payment + of tithes, the double procession of the Holy Ghost, and a blind obedience + to the Roman pontiff. As the weaker party, they pleaded the duties of + conscience, and implored the rights of toleration: "Our bodies," they + said, "are Cæsar's, but our souls belong only to God." The persecution was + checked by the firmness of the emperor: <a href="#linkCnote-34" + name="linkCnoteref-34" id="linkCnoteref-34">34</a> and if we can believe + that the same prince was poisoned by the Greeks themselves, we must + entertain a contemptible idea of the sense and gratitude of mankind. His + valor was a vulgar attribute, which he shared with ten thousand knights; + but Henry possessed the superior courage to oppose, in a superstitious + age, the pride and avarice of the clergy. In the cathedral of St. Sophia + he presumed to place his throne on the right hand of the patriarch; and + this presumption excited the sharpest censure of Pope Innocent the Third. + By a salutary edict, one of the first examples of the laws of mortmain, he + prohibited the alienation of fiefs: many of the Latins, desirous of + returning to Europe, resigned their estates to the church for a spiritual + or temporal reward; these holy lands were immediately discharged from + military service, and a colony of soldiers would have been gradually + transformed into a college of priests. <a href="#linkCnote-35" + name="linkCnoteref-35" id="linkCnoteref-35">35</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-31" id="linkCnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ Villehardouin, No. 257. + I quote, with regret, this lamentable conclusion, where we lose at once + the original history, and the rich illustrations of Ducange. The last + pages may derive some light from Henry's two epistles to Innocent III., + (Gesta, c. 106, 107.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-32" id="linkCnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ The marshal was alive in + 1212, but he probably died soon afterwards, without returning to France, + (Ducange, Observations sur Villehardouin, p. 238.) His fief of Messinople, + the gift of Boniface, was the ancient Maximianopolis, which flourished in + the time of Ammianus Marcellinus, among the cities of Thrace, (No. 141.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-321" id="linkCnote-321"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 321 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-321">return</a>)<br /> [ There was no battle. + On the advance of the Latins, John suddenly broke up his camp and + retreated. The Latins considered this unexpected deliverance almost a + miracle. Le Beau suggests the probability that the detection of the + Comans, who usually quitted the camp during the heats of summer, may have + caused the flight of the Bulgarians. Nicetas, c. 8 Villebardouin, c. 225. + Le Beau, vol. xvii. p. 242.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-33" id="linkCnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ The church of this + patron of Thessalonica was served by the canons of the holy sepulchre, and + contained a divine ointment which distilled daily and stupendous miracles, + (Ducange, Hist. de C. P. ii. 4.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-34" id="linkCnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ Acropolita (c. 17) + observes the persecution of the legate, and the toleration of Henry, + ('Erh, * as he calls him) kludwna katestorese. Note: Or rather 'ErrhV.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-35" id="linkCnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ See the reign of Henry, + in Ducange, (Hist. de C. P. l. i. c. 35—41, l. ii. c. 1—22,) + who is much indebted to the Epistles of the Popes. Le Beau (Hist. du Bas + Empire, tom. xxi. p. 120—122) has found, perhaps in Doutreman, some + laws of Henry, which determined the service of fiefs, and the prerogatives + of the emperor.] + </p> + <p> + The virtuous Henry died at Thessalonica, in the defence of that kingdom, + and of an infant, the son of his friend Boniface. In the two first + emperors of Constantinople the male line of the counts of Flanders was + extinct. But their sister Yolande was the wife of a French prince, the + mother of a numerous progeny; and one of her daughters had married Andrew + king of Hungary, a brave and pious champion of the cross. By seating him + on the Byzantine throne, the barons of Romania would have acquired the + forces of a neighboring and warlike kingdom; but the prudent Andrew + revered the laws of succession; and the princess Yolande, with her husband + Peter of Courtenay, count of Auxerre, was invited by the Latins to assume + the empire of the East. The royal birth of his father, the noble origin of + his mother, recommended to the barons of France the first cousin of their + king. His reputation was fair, his possessions were ample, and in the + bloody crusade against the Albigeois, the soldiers and the priests had + been abundantly satisfied of his zeal and valor. Vanity might applaud the + elevation of a French emperor of Constantinople; but prudence must pity, + rather than envy, his treacherous and imaginary greatness. To assert and + adorn his title, he was reduced to sell or mortgage the best of his + patrimony. By these expedients, the liberality of his royal kinsman Philip + Augustus, and the national spirit of chivalry, he was enabled to pass the + Alps at the head of one hundred and forty knights, and five thousand five + hundred sergeants and archers. After some hesitation, Pope Honorius the + Third was persuaded to crown the successor of Constantine: but he + performed the ceremony in a church without the walls, lest he should seem + to imply or to bestow any right of sovereignty over the ancient capital of + the empire. The Venetians had engaged to transport Peter and his forces + beyond the Adriatic, and the empress, with her four children, to the + Byzantine palace; but they required, as the price of their service, that + he should recover Durazzo from the despot of Epirus. Michael Angelus, or + Comnenus, the first of his dynasty, had bequeathed the succession of his + power and ambition to Theodore, his legitimate brother, who already + threatened and invaded the establishments of the Latins. After discharging + his debt by a fruitless assault, the emperor raised the siege to prosecute + a long and perilous journey over land from Durazzo to Thessalonica. He was + soon lost in the mountains of Epirus: the passes were fortified; his + provisions exhausted; he was delayed and deceived by a treacherous + negotiation; and, after Peter of Courtenay and the Roman legate had been + arrested in a banquet, the French troops, without leaders or hopes, were + eager to exchange their arms for the delusive promise of mercy and bread. + The Vatican thundered; and the impious Theodore was threatened with the + vengeance of earth and heaven; but the captive emperor and his soldiers + were forgotten, and the reproaches of the pope are confined to the + imprisonment of his legate. No sooner was he satisfied by the deliverance + of the priests and a promise of spiritual obedience, than he pardoned and + protected the despot of Epirus. His peremptory commands suspended the + ardor of the Venetians and the king of Hungary; and it was only by a + natural or untimely death <a href="#linkCnote-36" name="linkCnoteref-36" + id="linkCnoteref-36">36</a> that Peter of Courtenay was released from his + hopeless captivity. <a href="#linkCnote-37" name="linkCnoteref-37" + id="linkCnoteref-37">37</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-36" id="linkCnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ Acropolita (c. 14) + affirms, that Peter of Courtenay died by the sword, (ergon macairaV + genesqai;) but from his dark expressions, I should conclude a previous + captivity, wV pantaV ardhn desmwtaV poihsai sun pasi skeuesi. * The + Chronicle of Auxerre delays the emperor's death till the year 1219; and + Auxerre is in the neighborhood of Courtenay. Note: Whatever may have been + the fact, this can hardly be made out from the expressions of Acropolita.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-37" id="linkCnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ See the reign and death + of Peter of Courtenay, in Ducange, (Hist. de C. P. l. ii. c. 22—28,) + who feebly strives to excuse the neglect of the emperor by Honorius III.] + </p> + <p> + The long ignorance of his fate, and the presence of the lawful sovereign, + of Yolande, his wife or widow, delayed the proclamation of a new emperor. + Before her death, and in the midst of her grief, she was delivered of a + son, who was named Baldwin, the last and most unfortunate of the Latin + princes of Constantinople. His birth endeared him to the barons of + Romania; but his childhood would have prolonged the troubles of a + minority, and his claims were superseded by the elder claims of his + brethren. The first of these, Philip of Courtenay, who derived from his + mother the inheritance of Namur, had the wisdom to prefer the substance of + a marquisate to the shadow of an empire; and on his refusal, Robert, the + second of the sons of Peter and Yolande, was called to the throne of + Constantinople. Warned by his father's mischance, he pursued his slow and + secure journey through Germany and along the Danube: a passage was opened + by his sister's marriage with the king of Hungary; and the emperor Robert + was crowned by the patriarch in the cathedral of St. Sophia. But his reign + was an æra of calamity and disgrace; and the colony, as it was styled, of + New France yielded on all sides to the Greeks of Nice and Epirus. After a + victory, which he owed to his perfidy rather than his courage, Theodore + Angelus entered the kingdom of Thessalonica, expelled the feeble + Demetrius, the son of the marquis Boniface, erected his standard on the + walls of Adrianople; and added, by his vanity, a third or a fourth name to + the list of rival emperors. The relics of the Asiatic province were swept + away by John Vataces, the son-in-law and successor of Theodore Lascaris, + and who, in a triumphant reign of thirty-three years, displayed the + virtues both of peace and war. Under his discipline, the swords of the + French mercenaries were the most effectual instruments of his conquests, + and their desertion from the service of their country was at once a + symptom and a cause of the rising ascendant of the Greeks. By the + construction of a fleet, he obtained the command of the Hellespont, + reduced the islands of Lesbos and Rhodes, attacked the Venetians of + Candia, and intercepted the rare and parsimonious succors of the West. + Once, and once only, the Latin emperor sent an army against Vataces; and + in the defeat of that army, the veteran knights, the last of the original + conquerors, were left on the field of battle. But the success of a foreign + enemy was less painful to the pusillanimous Robert than the insolence of + his Latin subjects, who confounded the weakness of the emperor and of the + empire. His personal misfortunes will prove the anarchy of the government + and the ferociousness of the times. The amorous youth had neglected his + Greek bride, the daughter of Vataces, to introduce into the palace a + beautiful maid, of a private, though noble family of Artois; and her + mother had been tempted by the lustre of the purple to forfeit her + engagements with a gentleman of Burgundy. His love was converted into + rage; he assembled his friends, forced the palace gates, threw the mother + into the sea, and inhumanly cut off the nose and lips of the wife or + concubine of the emperor. Instead of punishing the offender, the barons + avowed and applauded the savage deed, <a href="#linkCnote-38" + name="linkCnoteref-38" id="linkCnoteref-38">38</a> which, as a prince and + as a man, it was impossible that Robert should forgive. He escaped from + the guilty city to implore the justice or compassion of the pope: the + emperor was coolly exhorted to return to his station; before he could + obey, he sunk under the weight of grief, shame, and impotent resentment. + <a href="#linkCnote-39" name="linkCnoteref-39" id="linkCnoteref-39">39</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-38" id="linkCnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ Marinus Sanutus (Secreta + Fidelium Crucis, l. ii. p. 4, c. 18, p. 73) is so much delighted with this + bloody deed, that he has transcribed it in his margin as a bonum exemplum. + Yet he acknowledges the damsel for the lawful wife of Robert.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-39" id="linkCnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ See the reign of Robert, + in Ducange, (Hist. de C. P. l. ii. c.—12.)] + </p> + <p> + It was only in the age of chivalry, that valor could ascend from a private + station to the thrones of Jerusalem and Constantinople. The titular + kingdom of Jerusalem had devolved to Mary, the daughter of Isabella and + Conrad of Montferrat, and the granddaughter of Almeric or Amaury. She was + given to John of Brienne, of a noble family in Champagne, by the public + voice, and the judgment of Philip Augustus, who named him as the most + worthy champion of the Holy Land. <a href="#linkCnote-40" + name="linkCnoteref-40" id="linkCnoteref-40">40</a> In the fifth crusade, + he led a hundred thousand Latins to the conquest of Egypt: by him the + siege of Damietta was achieved; and the subsequent failure was justly + ascribed to the pride and avarice of the legate. After the marriage of his + daughter with Frederic the Second, <a href="#linkCnote-41" + name="linkCnoteref-41" id="linkCnoteref-41">41</a> he was provoked by the + emperor's ingratitude to accept the command of the army of the church; and + though advanced in life, and despoiled of royalty, the sword and spirit of + John of Brienne were still ready for the service of Christendom. In the + seven years of his brother's reign, Baldwin of Courtenay had not emerged + from a state of childhood, and the barons of Romania felt the strong + necessity of placing the sceptre in the hands of a man and a hero. The + veteran king of Jerusalem might have disdained the name and office of + regent; they agreed to invest him for his life with the title and + prerogatives of emperor, on the sole condition that Baldwin should marry + his second daughter, and succeed at a mature age to the throne of + Constantinople. The expectation, both of the Greeks and Latins, was + kindled by the renown, the choice, and the presence of John of Brienne; + and they admired his martial aspect, his green and vigorous age of more + than fourscore years, and his size and stature, which surpassed the common + measure of mankind. <a href="#linkCnote-42" name="linkCnoteref-42" + id="linkCnoteref-42">42</a> But avarice, and the love of ease, appear to + have chilled the ardor of enterprise: <a href="#linkCnote-421" + name="linkCnoteref-421" id="linkCnoteref-421">421</a> his troops were + disbanded, and two years rolled away without action or honor, till he was + awakened by the dangerous alliance of Vataces emperor of Nice, and of Azan + king of Bulgaria. They besieged Constantinople by sea and land, with an + army of one hundred thousand men, and a fleet of three hundred ships of + war; while the entire force of the Latin emperor was reduced to one + hundred and sixty knights, and a small addition of sergeants and archers. + I tremble to relate, that instead of defending the city, the hero made a + sally at the head of his cavalry; and that of forty-eight squadrons of the + enemy, no more than three escaped from the edge of his invincible sword. + Fired by his example, the infantry and the citizens boarded the vessels + that anchored close to the walls; and twenty-five were dragged in triumph + into the harbor of Constantinople. At the summons of the emperor, the + vassals and allies armed in her defence; broke through every obstacle that + opposed their passage; and, in the succeeding year, obtained a second + victory over the same enemies. By the rude poets of the age, John of + Brienne is compared to Hector, Roland, and Judas Machabæus: <a + href="#linkCnote-43" name="linkCnoteref-43" id="linkCnoteref-43">43</a> + but their credit, and his glory, receive some abatement from the silence + of the Greeks. The empire was soon deprived of the last of her champions; + and the dying monarch was ambitious to enter paradise in the habit of a + Franciscan friar. <a href="#linkCnote-44" name="linkCnoteref-44" + id="linkCnoteref-44">44</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-40" id="linkCnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ Rex igitur Franciæ, + deliberatione habitâ, respondit nuntiis, se daturum hominem Syriæ partibus + aptum; in armis probum (<i>preux</i>) in bellis securum, in agendis + providum, Johannem comitem Brennensem. Sanut. Secret. Fidelium, l. iii. p. + xi. c. 4, p. 205 Matthew Paris, p. 159.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-41" id="linkCnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ Giannone (Istoria + Civile, tom. ii. l. xvi. p. 380—385) discusses the marriage of + Frederic II. with the daughter of John of Brienne, and the double union of + the crowns of Naples and Jerusalem.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-42" id="linkCnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ Acropolita, c. 27. The + historian was at that time a boy, and educated at Constantinople. In 1233, + when he was eleven years old, his father broke the Latin chain, left a + splendid fortune, and escaped to the Greek court of Nice, where his son + was raised to the highest honors.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-421" id="linkCnote-421"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 421 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-421">return</a>)<br /> [ John de Brienne, + elected emperor 1229, wasted two years in preparations, and did not arrive + at Constantinople till 1231. Two years more glided away in inglorious + inaction; he then made some ineffective warlike expeditions. + Constantinople was not besieged till 1234.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-43" id="linkCnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ Philip Mouskes, bishop + of Tournay, (A.D. 1274—1282,) has composed a poem, or rather string + of verses, in bad old Flemish French, on the Latin emperors of + Constantinople, which Ducange has published at the end of Villehardouin; + see p. 38, for the prowess of John of Brienne. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + N'Aie, Ector, Roll' ne Ogiers + Ne Judas Machabeus li fiers + Tant ne fit d'armes en estors + Com fist li Rois Jehans cel jors + Et il defors et il dedans + La paru sa force et ses sens + Et li hardiment qu'il avoit.] +</pre> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-44" id="linkCnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ See the reign of John de + Brienne, in Ducange, Hist. de C. P. l. ii. c. 13—26.] + </p> + <p> + In the double victory of John of Brienne, I cannot discover the name or + exploits of his pupil Baldwin, who had attained the age of military + service, and who succeeded to the imperial dignity on the decease of his + adoptive father. <a href="#linkCnote-45" name="linkCnoteref-45" + id="linkCnoteref-45">45</a> The royal youth was employed on a commission + more suitable to his temper; he was sent to visit the Western courts, of + the pope more especially, and of the king of France; to excite their pity + by the view of his innocence and distress; and to obtain some supplies of + men or money for the relief of the sinking empire. He thrice repeated + these mendicant visits, in which he seemed to prolong his stay and + postpone his return; of the five-and-twenty years of his reign, a greater + number were spent abroad than at home; and in no place did the emperor + deem himself less free and secure than in his native country and his + capital. On some public occasions, his vanity might be soothed by the + title of Augustus, and by the honors of the purple; and at the general + council of Lyons, when Frederic the Second was excommunicated and deposed, + his Oriental colleague was enthroned on the right hand of the pope. But + how often was the exile, the vagrant, the Imperial beggar, humbled with + scorn, insulted with pity, and degraded in his own eyes and those of the + nations! In his first visit to England, he was stopped at Dover by a + severe reprimand, that he should presume, without leave, to enter an + independent kingdom. After some delay, Baldwin, however, was permitted to + pursue his journey, was entertained with cold civility, and thankfully + departed with a present of seven hundred marks. <a href="#linkCnote-46" + name="linkCnoteref-46" id="linkCnoteref-46">46</a> From the avarice of + Rome he could only obtain the proclamation of a crusade, and a treasure of + indulgences; a coin whose currency was depreciated by too frequent and + indiscriminate abuse. His birth and misfortunes recommended him to the + generosity of his cousin Louis the Ninth; but the martial zeal of the + saint was diverted from Constantinople to Egypt and Palestine; and the + public and private poverty of Baldwin was alleviated, for a moment, by the + alienation of the marquisate of Namur and the lordship of Courtenay, the + last remains of his inheritance. <a href="#linkCnote-47" + name="linkCnoteref-47" id="linkCnoteref-47">47</a> By such shameful or + ruinous expedients, he once more returned to Romania, with an army of + thirty thousand soldiers, whose numbers were doubled in the apprehension + of the Greeks. His first despatches to France and England announced his + victories and his hopes: he had reduced the country round the capital to + the distance of three days' journey; and if he succeeded against an + important, though nameless, city, (most probably Chiorli,) the frontier + would be safe and the passage accessible. But these expectations (if + Baldwin was sincere) quickly vanished like a dream: the troops and + treasures of France melted away in his unskilful hands; and the throne of + the Latin emperor was protected by a dishonorable alliance with the Turks + and Comans. To secure the former, he consented to bestow his niece on the + unbelieving sultan of Cogni; to please the latter, he complied with their + Pagan rites; a dog was sacrificed between the two armies; and the + contracting parties tasted each other's blood, as a pledge of their + fidelity. <a href="#linkCnote-48" name="linkCnoteref-48" + id="linkCnoteref-48">48</a> In the palace, or prison, of Constantinople, + the successor of Augustus demolished the vacant houses for winter fuel, + and stripped the lead from the churches for the daily expense of his + family. Some usurious loans were dealt with a scanty hand by the merchants + of Italy; and Philip, his son and heir, was pawned at Venice as the + security for a debt. <a href="#linkCnote-49" name="linkCnoteref-49" + id="linkCnoteref-49">49</a> Thirst, hunger, and nakedness, are positive + evils: but wealth is relative; and a prince who would be rich in a private + station, may be exposed by the increase of his wants to all the anxiety + and bitterness of poverty. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-45" id="linkCnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ See the reign of Baldwin + II. till his expulsion from Constantinople, in Ducange, Hist. de C. P. l. + iv. c. 1—34, the end l. v. c. 1—33.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-46" id="linkCnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ Matthew Paris relates + the two visits of Baldwin II. to the English court, p. 396, 637; his + return to Greece armatâ manû, p. 407 his letters of his nomen formidabile, + &c., p. 481, (a passage which has escaped Ducange;) his expulsion, p. + 850.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-47" id="linkCnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ Louis IX. disapproved + and stopped the alienation of Courtenay (Ducange, l. iv. c. 23.) It is now + annexed to the royal demesne but granted for a term (<i>engagé</i>) to the + family of Boulainvilliers. Courtenay, in the election of Nemours in the + Isle de France, is a town of 900 inhabitants, with the remains of a + castle, (Mélanges tirés d'une Grande Bibliothèque, tom. xlv. p. 74—77.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-48" id="linkCnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ Joinville, p. 104, edit. + du Louvre. A Coman prince, who died without baptism, was buried at the + gates of Constantinople with a live retinue of slaves and horses.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-49" id="linkCnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ Sanut. Secret. Fidel. + Crucis, l. ii. p. iv. c. 18, p. 73.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkC2HCH0003" id="linkC2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXI: Partition Of The Empire By The French And Venetians.—Part + III. + </h2> + <p> + But in this abject distress, the emperor and empire were still possessed + of an ideal treasure, which drew its fantastic value from the superstition + of the Christian world. The merit of the true cross was somewhat impaired + by its frequent division; and a long captivity among the infidels might + shed some suspicion on the fragments that were produced in the East and + West. But another relic of the Passion was preserved in the Imperial + chapel of Constantinople; and the crown of thorns which had been placed on + the head of Christ was equally precious and authentic. It had formerly + been the practice of the Egyptian debtors to deposit, as a security, the + mummies of their parents; and both their honor and religion were bound for + the redemption of the pledge. In the same manner, and in the absence of + the emperor, the barons of Romania borrowed the sum of thirteen thousand + one hundred and thirty-four pieces of gold <a href="#linkCnote-50" + name="linkCnoteref-50" id="linkCnoteref-50">50</a> on the credit of the + holy crown: they failed in the performance of their contract; and a rich + Venetian, Nicholas Querini, undertook to satisfy their impatient + creditors, on condition that the relic should be lodged at Venice, to + become his absolute property, if it were not redeemed within a short and + definite term. The barons apprised their sovereign of the hard treaty and + impending loss and as the empire could not afford a ransom of seven + thousand pounds sterling, Baldwin was anxious to snatch the prize from the + Venetians, and to vest it with more honor and emolument in the hands of + the most Christian king. <a href="#linkCnote-51" name="linkCnoteref-51" + id="linkCnoteref-51">51</a> Yet the negotiation was attended with some + delicacy. In the purchase of relics, the saint would have started at the + guilt of simony; but if the mode of expression were changed, he might + lawfully repay the debt, accept the gift, and acknowledge the obligation. + His ambassadors, two Dominicans, were despatched to Venice to redeem and + receive the holy crown which had escaped the dangers of the sea and the + galleys of Vataces. On opening a wooden box, they recognized the seals of + the doge and barons, which were applied on a shrine of silver; and within + this shrine the monument of the Passion was enclosed in a golden vase. The + reluctant Venetians yielded to justice and power: the emperor Frederic + granted a free and honorable passage; the court of France advanced as far + as Troyes in Champagne, to meet with devotion this inestimable relic: it + was borne in triumph through Paris by the king himself, barefoot, and in + his shirt; and a free gift of ten thousand marks of silver reconciled + Baldwin to his loss. The success of this transaction tempted the Latin + emperor to offer with the same generosity the remaining furniture of his + chapel; <a href="#linkCnote-52" name="linkCnoteref-52" id="linkCnoteref-52">52</a> + a large and authentic portion of the true cross; the baby-linen of the Son + of God, the lance, the sponge, and the chain, of his Passion; the rod of + Moses, and part of the skull of St. John the Baptist. For the reception of + these spiritual treasures, twenty thousand marks were expended by St. + Louis on a stately foundation, the holy chapel of Paris, on which the muse + of Boileau has bestowed a comic immortality. The truth of such remote and + ancient relics, which cannot be proved by any human testimony, must be + admitted by those who believe in the miracles which they have performed. + About the middle of the last age, an inveterate ulcer was touched and + cured by a holy prickle of the holy crown: <a href="#linkCnote-53" + name="linkCnoteref-53" id="linkCnoteref-53">53</a> the prodigy is attested + by the most pious and enlightened Christians of France; nor will the fact + be easily disproved, except by those who are armed with a general antidote + against religious credulity. <a href="#linkCnote-54" name="linkCnoteref-54" + id="linkCnoteref-54">54</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-50" id="linkCnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ Under the words <i>Perparus</i>, + <i>Perpera</i>, <i>Hyperperum</i>, Ducange is short and vague: Monetæ + genus. From a corrupt passage of Guntherus, (Hist. C. P. c. 8, p. 10,) I + guess that the Perpera was the nummus aureus, the fourth part of a mark of + silver, or about ten shillings sterling in value. In lead it would be too + contemptible.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-51" id="linkCnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ For the translation of + the holy crown, &c., from Constantinople to Paris, see Ducange (Hist. + de C. P. l. iv. c. 11—14, 24, 35) and Fleury, (Hist. Ecclés. tom. + xvii. p. 201—204.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-52" id="linkCnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ Mélanges tirés d'une + Grande Bibliothèque, tom. xliii. p. 201—205. The Lutrin of Boileau + exhibits the inside, the soul and manners of the <i>Sainte Chapelle</i>; + and many facts relative to the institution are collected and explained by + his commentators, Brosset and De St. Marc.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-53" id="linkCnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ It was performed A.D. + 1656, March 24, on the niece of Pascal; and that superior genius, with + Arnauld, Nicole, &c., were on the spot, to believe and attest a + miracle which confounded the Jesuits, and saved Port Royal, (uvres de + Racine, tom. vi. p. 176—187, in his eloquent History of Port + Royal.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-54" id="linkCnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ Voltaire (Siécle de + Louis XIV. c. 37, uvres, tom. ix. p. 178, 179) strives to invalidate the + fact: but Hume, (Essays, vol. ii. p. 483, 484,) with more skill and + success, seizes the battery, and turns the cannon against his enemies.] + </p> + <p> + The Latins of Constantinople <a href="#linkCnote-55" name="linkCnoteref-55" + id="linkCnoteref-55">55</a> were on all sides encompassed and pressed; + their sole hope, the last delay of their ruin, was in the division of + their Greek and Bulgarian enemies; and of this hope they were deprived by + the superior arms and policy of Vataces, emperor of Nice. From the + Propontis to the rocky coast of Pamphylia, Asia was peaceful and + prosperous under his reign; and the events of every campaign extended his + influence in Europe. The strong cities of the hills of Macedonia and + Thrace were rescued from the Bulgarians; and their kingdom was + circumscribed by its present and proper limits, along the southern banks + of the Danube. The sole emperor of the Romans could no longer brook that a + lord of Epirus, a Comnenian prince of the West, should presume to dispute + or share the honors of the purple; and the humble Demetrius changed the + color of his buskins, and accepted with gratitude the appellation of + despot. His own subjects were exasperated by his baseness and incapacity; + they implored the protection of their supreme lord. After some resistance, + the kingdom of Thessalonica was united to the empire of Nice; and Vataces + reigned without a competitor from the Turkish borders to the Adriatic + Gulf. The princes of Europe revered his merit and power; and had he + subscribed an orthodox creed, it should seem that the pope would have + abandoned without reluctance the Latin throne of Constantinople. But the + death of Vataces, the short and busy reign of Theodore his son, and the + helpless infancy of his grandson John, suspended the restoration of the + Greeks. In the next chapter, I shall explain their domestic revolutions; + in this place, it will be sufficient to observe, that the young prince was + oppressed by the ambition of his guardian and colleague, Michael + Palæologus, who displayed the virtues and vices that belong to the founder + of a new dynasty. The emperor Baldwin had flattered himself, that he might + recover some provinces or cities by an impotent negotiation. His + ambassadors were dismissed from Nice with mockery and contempt. At every + place which they named, Palæologus alleged some special reason, which + rendered it dear and valuable in his eyes: in the one he was born; in + another he had been first promoted to military command; and in a third he + had enjoyed, and hoped long to enjoy, the pleasures of the chase. "And + what then do you propose to give us?" said the astonished deputies. + "Nothing," replied the Greek, "not a foot of land. If your master be + desirous of peace, let him pay me, as an annual tribute, the sum which he + receives from the trade and customs of Constantinople. On these terms, I + may allow him to reign. If he refuses, it is war. I am not ignorant of the + art of war, and I trust the event to God and my sword." <a + href="#linkCnote-56" name="linkCnoteref-56" id="linkCnoteref-56">56</a> An + expedition against the despot of Epirus was the first prelude of his arms. + If a victory was followed by a defeat; if the race of the Comneni or + Angeli survived in those mountains his efforts and his reign; the + captivity of Villehardouin, prince of Achaia, deprived the Latins of the + most active and powerful vassal of their expiring monarchy. The republics + of Venice and Genoa disputed, in the first of their naval wars, the + command of the sea and the commerce of the East. Pride and interest + attached the Venetians to the defence of Constantinople; their rivals were + tempted to promote the designs of her enemies, and the alliance of the + Genoese with the schismatic conqueror provoked the indignation of the + Latin church. <a href="#linkCnote-57" name="linkCnoteref-57" + id="linkCnoteref-57">57</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-55" id="linkCnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ The gradual losses of + the Latins may be traced in the third fourth, and fifth books of the + compilation of Ducange: but of the Greek conquests he has dropped many + circumstances, which may be recovered from the larger history of George + Acropolita, and the three first books of Nicephorus, Gregoras, two writers + of the Byzantine series, who have had the good fortune to meet with + learned editors Leo Allatius at Rome, and John Boivin in the Academy of + Inscriptions of Paris.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-56" id="linkCnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ George Acropolita, c. + 78, p. 89, 90. edit. Paris.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-57" id="linkCnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ The Greeks, ashamed of + any foreign aid, disguise the alliance and succor of the Genoese: but the + fact is proved by the testimony of J Villani (Chron. l. vi. c. 71, in + Muratori, Script. Rerum Italicarum, tom. xiii. p. 202, 203) and William de + Nangis, (Annales de St. Louis, p. 248 in the Louvre Joinville,) two + impartial foreigners; and Urban IV threatened to deprive Genoa of her + archbishop.] + </p> + <p> + Intent on his great object, the emperor Michael visited in person and + strengthened the troops and fortifications of Thrace. The remains of the + Latins were driven from their last possessions: he assaulted without + success the suburb of Galata; and corresponded with a perfidious baron, + who proved unwilling, or unable, to open the gates of the metropolis. The + next spring, his favorite general, Alexius Strategopulus, whom he had + decorated with the title of Cæsar, passed the Hellespont with eight + hundred horse and some infantry, <a href="#linkCnote-58" + name="linkCnoteref-58" id="linkCnoteref-58">58</a> on a secret expedition. + His instructions enjoined him to approach, to listen, to watch, but not to + risk any doubtful or dangerous enterprise against the city. The adjacent + territory between the Propontis and the Black Sea was cultivated by a + hardy race of peasants and outlaws, exercised in arms, uncertain in their + allegiance, but inclined by language, religion, and present advantage, to + the party of the Greeks. They were styled the <i>volunteers</i>; <a + href="#linkCnote-59" name="linkCnoteref-59" id="linkCnoteref-59">59</a> + and by their free service the army of Alexius, with the regulars of Thrace + and the Coman auxiliaries, <a href="#linkCnote-60" name="linkCnoteref-60" + id="linkCnoteref-60">60</a> was augmented to the number of five-and-twenty + thousand men. By the ardor of the volunteers, and by his own ambition, the + Cæsar was stimulated to disobey the precise orders of his master, in the + just confidence that success would plead his pardon and reward. The + weakness of Constantinople, and the distress and terror of the Latins, + were familiar to the observation of the volunteers; and they represented + the present moment as the most propitious to surprise and conquest. A rash + youth, the new governor of the Venetian colony, had sailed away with + thirty galleys, and the best of the French knights, on a wild expedition + to Daphnusia, a town on the Black Sea, at the distance of forty leagues; + <a href="#linkCnote-601" name="linkCnoteref-601" id="linkCnoteref-601">601</a> + and the remaining Latins were without strength or suspicion. They were + informed that Alexius had passed the Hellespont; but their apprehensions + were lulled by the smallness of his original numbers; and their imprudence + had not watched the subsequent increase of his army. If he left his main + body to second and support his operations, he might advance unperceived in + the night with a chosen detachment. While some applied scaling-ladders to + the lowest part of the walls, they were secure of an old Greek, who would + introduce their companions through a subterraneous passage into his house; + they could soon on the inside break an entrance through the golden gate, + which had been long obstructed; and the conqueror would be in the heart of + the city before the Latins were conscious of their danger. After some + debate, the Cæsar resigned himself to the faith of the volunteers; they + were trusty, bold, and successful; and in describing the plan, I have + already related the execution and success. <a href="#linkCnote-61" + name="linkCnoteref-61" id="linkCnoteref-61">61</a> But no sooner had + Alexius passed the threshold of the golden gate, than he trembled at his + own rashness; he paused, he deliberated; till the desperate volunteers + urged him forwards, by the assurance that in retreat lay the greatest and + most inevitable danger. Whilst the Cæsar kept his regulars in firm array, + the Comans dispersed themselves on all sides; an alarm was sounded, and + the threats of fire and pillage compelled the citizens to a decisive + resolution. The Greeks of Constantinople remembered their native + sovereigns; the Genoese merchants their recent alliance and Venetian foes; + every quarter was in arms; and the air resounded with a general + acclamation of "Long life and victory to Michael and John, the august + emperors of the Romans!" Their rival, Baldwin, was awakened by the sound; + but the most pressing danger could not prompt him to draw his sword in the + defence of a city which he deserted, perhaps, with more pleasure than + regret: he fled from the palace to the seashore, where he descried the + welcome sails of the fleet returning from the vain and fruitless attempt + on Daphnusia. Constantinople was irrecoverably lost; but the Latin emperor + and the principal families embarked on board the Venetian galleys, and + steered for the Isle of Euba, and afterwards for Italy, where the royal + fugitive was entertained by the pope and Sicilian king with a mixture of + contempt and pity. From the loss of Constantinople to his death, he + consumed thirteen years, soliciting the Catholic powers to join in his + restoration: the lesson had been familiar to his youth; nor was his last + exile more indigent or shameful than his three former pilgrimages to the + courts of Europe. His son Philip was the heir of an ideal empire; and the + pretensions of his daughter Catherine were transported by her marriage to + Charles of Valois, the brother of Philip the Fair, king of France. The + house of Courtenay was represented in the female line by successive + alliances, till the title of emperor of Constantinople, too bulky and + sonorous for a private name, modestly expired in silence and oblivion. <a + href="#linkCnote-62" name="linkCnoteref-62" id="linkCnoteref-62">62</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-58" id="linkCnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ Some precautions must be + used in reconciling the discordant numbers; the 800 soldiers of Nicetas, + the 25,000 of Spandugino, (apud Ducange, l. v. c. 24;) the Greeks and + Scythians of Acropolita; and the numerous army of Michael, in the Epistles + of Pope Urban IV. (i. 129.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-59" id="linkCnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ Qelhmatarioi. They are + described and named by Pachymer, (l. ii. c. 14.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-60" id="linkCnote-60"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 60 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-60">return</a>)<br /> [ It is needless to seek + these Comans in the deserts of Tartary, or even of Moldavia. A part of the + horde had submitted to John Vataces, and was probably settled as a nursery + of soldiers on some waste lands of Thrace, (Cantacuzen. l. i. c. 2.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-601" id="linkCnote-601"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 601 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-601">return</a>)<br /> [ According to several + authorities, particularly Abulfaradj. Chron. Arab. p. 336, this was a + stratagem on the part of the Greeks to weaken the garrison of + Constantinople. The Greek commander offered to surrender the town on the + appearance of the Venetians.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-61" id="linkCnote-61"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 61 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-61">return</a>)<br /> [ The loss of + Constantinople is briefly told by the Latins: the conquest is described + with more satisfaction by the Greeks; by Acropolita, (c. 85,) Pachymer, + (l. ii. c. 26, 27,) Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. iv. c. 1, 2) See Ducange, + Hist. de C. P. l. v. c. 19—27.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-62" id="linkCnote-62"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 62 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-62">return</a>)<br /> [ See the three last books + (l. v.—viii.) and the genealogical tables of Ducange. In the year + 1382, the titular emperor of Constantinople was James de Baux, duke of + Andria in the kingdom of Naples, the son of Margaret, daughter of + Catherine de Valois, daughter of Catharine, daughter of Philip, son of + Baldwin II., (Ducange, l. viii. c. 37, 38.) It is uncertain whether he + left any posterity.] + </p> + <p> + After this narrative of the expeditions of the Latins to Palestine and + Constantinople, I cannot dismiss the subject without resolving the general + consequences on the countries that were the scene, and on the nations that + were the actors, of these memorable crusades. <a href="#linkCnote-63" + name="linkCnoteref-63" id="linkCnoteref-63">63</a> As soon as the arms of + the Franks were withdrawn, the impression, though not the memory, was + erased in the Mahometan realms of Egypt and Syria. The faithful disciples + of the prophet were never tempted by a profane desire to study the laws or + language of the idolaters; nor did the simplicity of their primitive + manners receive the slightest alteration from their intercourse in peace + and war with the unknown strangers of the West. The Greeks, who thought + themselves proud, but who were only vain, showed a disposition somewhat + less inflexible. In the efforts for the recovery of their empire, they + emulated the valor, discipline, and tactics of their antagonists. The + modern literature of the West they might justly despise; but its free + spirit would instruct them in the rights of man; and some institutions of + public and private life were adopted from the French. The correspondence + of Constantinople and Italy diffused the knowledge of the Latin tongue; + and several of the fathers and classics were at length honored with a + Greek version. <a href="#linkCnote-64" name="linkCnoteref-64" + id="linkCnoteref-64">64</a> But the national and religious prejudices of + the Orientals were inflamed by persecution, and the reign of the Latins + confirmed the separation of the two churches. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-63" id="linkCnote-63"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 63 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-63">return</a>)<br /> [ Abulfeda, who saw the + conclusion of the crusades, speaks of the kingdoms of the Franks, and + those of the Negroes, as equally unknown, (Prolegom. ad Geograph.) Had he + not disdained the Latin language, how easily might the Syrian prince have + found books and interpreters!] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-64" id="linkCnote-64"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 64 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-64">return</a>)<br /> [ A short and superficial + account of these versions from Latin into Greek is given by Huet, (de + Interpretatione et de claris Interpretibus p. 131—135.) Maximus + Planudes, a monk of Constantinople, (A.D. 1327—1353) has translated + Cæsar's Commentaries, the Somnium Scipionis, the Metamorphoses and + Heroides of Ovid, &c., (Fabric. Bib. Græc. tom. x. p. 533.)] + </p> + <p> + If we compare the æra of the crusades, the Latins of Europe with the + Greeks and Arabians, their respective degrees of knowledge, industry, and + art, our rude ancestors must be content with the third rank in the scale + of nations. Their successive improvement and present superiority may be + ascribed to a peculiar energy of character, to an active and imitative + spirit, unknown to their more polished rivals, who at that time were in a + stationary or retrograde state. With such a disposition, the Latins should + have derived the most early and essential benefits from a series of events + which opened to their eyes the prospect of the world, and introduced them + to a long and frequent intercourse with the more cultivated regions of the + East. The first and most obvious progress was in trade and manufactures, + in the arts which are strongly prompted by the thirst of wealth, the calls + of necessity, and the gratification of the sense or vanity. Among the + crowd of unthinking fanatics, a captive or a pilgrim might sometimes + observe the superior refinements of Cairo and Constantinople: the first + importer of windmills <a href="#linkCnote-65" name="linkCnoteref-65" + id="linkCnoteref-65">65</a> was the benefactor of nations; and if such + blessings are enjoyed without any grateful remembrance, history has + condescended to notice the more apparent luxuries of silk and sugar, which + were transported into Italy from Greece and Egypt. But the intellectual + wants of the Latins were more slowly felt and supplied; the ardor of + studious curiosity was awakened in Europe by different causes and more + recent events; and, in the age of the crusades, they viewed with careless + indifference the literature of the Greeks and Arabians. Some rudiments of + mathematical and medicinal knowledge might be imparted in practice and in + figures; necessity might produce some interpreters for the grosser + business of merchants and soldiers; but the commerce of the Orientals had + not diffused the study and knowledge of their languages in the schools of + Europe. <a href="#linkCnote-66" name="linkCnoteref-66" id="linkCnoteref-66">66</a> + If a similar principle of religion repulsed the idiom of the Koran, it + should have excited their patience and curiosity to understand the + original text of the gospel; and the same grammar would have unfolded the + sense of Plato and the beauties of Homer. Yet in a reign of sixty years, + the Latins of Constantinople disdained the speech and learning of their + subjects; and the manuscripts were the only treasures which the natives + might enjoy without rapine or envy. Aristotle was indeed the oracle of the + Western universities, but it was a barbarous Aristotle; and, instead of + ascending to the fountain head, his Latin votaries humbly accepted a + corrupt and remote version, from the Jews and Moors of Andalusia. The + principle of the crusades was a savage fanaticism; and the most important + effects were analogous to the cause. Each pilgrim was ambitious to return + with his sacred spoils, the relics of Greece and Palestine; <a + href="#linkCnote-67" name="linkCnoteref-67" id="linkCnoteref-67">67</a> + and each relic was preceded and followed by a train of miracles and + visions. The belief of the Catholics was corrupted by new legends, their + practice by new superstitions; and the establishment of the inquisition, + the mendicant orders of monks and friars, the last abuse of indulgences, + and the final progress of idolatry, flowed from the baleful fountain of + the holy war. The active spirit of the Latins preyed on the vitals of + their reason and religion; and if the ninth and tenth centuries were the + times of darkness, the thirteenth and fourteenth were the age of absurdity + and fable. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-65" id="linkCnote-65"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 65 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-65">return</a>)<br /> [ Windmills, first + invented in the dry country of Asia Minor, were used in Normandy as early + as the year 1105, (Vie privée des François, tom. i. p. 42, 43. Ducange, + Gloss. Latin. tom. iv. p. 474.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-66" id="linkCnote-66"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 66 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-66">return</a>)<br /> [ See the complaints of + Roger Bacon, (Biographia Britannica, vol. i. p. 418, Kippis's edition.) If + Bacon himself, or Gerbert, understood <i>some</i>Greek, they were + prodigies, and owed nothing to the commerce of the East.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-67" id="linkCnote-67"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 67 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-67">return</a>)<br /> [ Such was the opinion of + the great Leibnitz, (uvres de Fontenelle, tom. v. p. 458,) a master of the + history of the middle ages. I shall only instance the pedigree of the + Carmelites, and the flight of the house of Loretto, which were both + derived from Palestine.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkC2HCH0004" id="linkC2HCH0004"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXI: Partition Of The Empire By The French And Venetians.—Part + IV. + </h2> + <p> + In the profession of Christianity, in the cultivation of a fertile land, + the northern conquerors of the Roman empire insensibly mingled with the + provincials, and rekindled the embers of the arts of antiquity. Their + settlements about the age of Charlemagne had acquired some degree of order + and stability, when they were overwhelmed by new swarms of invaders, the + Normans, Saracens, <a href="#linkCnote-68" name="linkCnoteref-68" + id="linkCnoteref-68">68</a> and Hungarians, who replunged the western + countries of Europe into their former state of anarchy and barbarism. + About the eleventh century, the second tempest had subsided by the + expulsion or conversion of the enemies of Christendom: the tide of + civilization, which had so long ebbed, began to flow with a steady and + accelerated course; and a fairer prospect was opened to the hopes and + efforts of the rising generations. Great was the increase, and rapid the + progress, during the two hundred years of the crusades; and some + philosophers have applauded the propitious influence of these holy wars, + which appear to me to have checked rather than forwarded the maturity of + Europe. <a href="#linkCnote-69" name="linkCnoteref-69" id="linkCnoteref-69">69</a> + The lives and labors of millions, which were buried in the East, would + have been more profitably employed in the improvement of their native + country: the accumulated stock of industry and wealth would have + overflowed in navigation and trade; and the Latins would have been + enriched and enlightened by a pure and friendly correspondence with the + climates of the East. In one respect I can indeed perceive the accidental + operation of the crusades, not so much in producing a benefit as in + removing an evil. The larger portion of the inhabitants of Europe was + chained to the soil, without freedom, or property, or knowledge; and the + two orders of ecclesiastics and nobles, whose numbers were comparatively + small, alone deserved the name of citizens and men. This oppressive system + was supported by the arts of the clergy and the swords of the barons. The + authority of the priests operated in the darker ages as a salutary + antidote: they prevented the total extinction of letters, mitigated the + fierceness of the times, sheltered the poor and defenceless, and preserved + or revived the peace and order of civil society. But the independence, + rapine, and discord of the feudal lords were unmixed with any semblance of + good; and every hope of industry and improvement was crushed by the iron + weight of the martial aristocracy. Among the causes that undermined that + Gothic edifice, a conspicuous place must be allowed to the crusades. The + estates of the barons were dissipated, and their race was often + extinguished, in these costly and perilous expeditions. Their poverty + extorted from their pride those charters of freedom which unlocked the + fetters of the slave, secured the farm of the peasant and the shop of the + artificer, and gradually restored a substance and a soul to the most + numerous and useful part of the community. The conflagration which + destroyed the tall and barren trees of the forest gave air and scope to + the vegetation of the smaller and nutritive plants of the soil. <a + href="#linkCnote-691" name="linkCnoteref-691" id="linkCnoteref-691">691</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-68" id="linkCnote-68"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 68 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-68">return</a>)<br /> [ If I rank the Saracens + with the Barbarians, it is only relative to their wars, or rather inroads, + in Italy and France, where their sole purpose was to plunder and destroy.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-69" id="linkCnote-69"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 69 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-69">return</a>)<br /> [ On this interesting + subject, the progress of society in Europe, a strong ray of philosophical + light has broke from Scotland in our own times; and it is with private, as + well as public regard, that I repeat the names of Hume, Robertson, and + Adam Smith.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-691" id="linkCnote-691"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 691 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-691">return</a>)<br /> [ On the consequences of + the crusades, compare the valuable Essay of Heeren, that of M. Choiseul + d'Aillecourt, and a chapter of Mr. Forster's "Mahometanism Unveiled." I + may admire this gentleman's learning and industry, without pledging myself + to his wild theory of prophets interpretation.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <i>Digression On The Family Of Courtenay.</i> + </p> + <p> + The purple of three emperors, who have reigned at Constantinople, will + authorize or excuse a digression on the origin and singular fortunes of + the house of Courtenay, <a href="#linkCnote-70" name="linkCnoteref-70" + id="linkCnoteref-70">70</a> in the three principal branches: I. Of Edessa; + II. Of France; and III. Of England; of which the last only has survived + the revolutions of eight hundred years. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-70" id="linkCnote-70"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 70 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-70">return</a>)<br /> [ I have applied, but not + confined, myself to <i>A genealogical History of the noble and illustrious + Family of Courtenay, by Ezra Cleaveland, Tutor to Sir William Courtenay, + and Rector of Honiton; Exon. 1735, in folio.</i> The first part is + extracted from William of Tyre; the second from Bouchet's French history; + and the third from various memorials, public, provincial, and private, of + the Courtenays of Devonshire The rector of Honiton has more gratitude than + industry, and more industry than criticism.] + </p> + <p> + I. Before the introduction of trade, which scatters riches, and of + knowledge, which dispels prejudice, the prerogative of birth is most + strongly felt and most humbly acknowledged. In every age, the laws and + manners of the Germans have discriminated the ranks of society; the dukes + and counts, who shared the empire of Charlemagne, converted their office + to an inheritance; and to his children, each feudal lord bequeathed his + honor and his sword. The proudest families are content to lose, in the + darkness of the middle ages, the tree of their pedigree, which, however + deep and lofty, must ultimately rise from a plebeian root; and their + historians must descend ten centuries below the Christian æra, before they + can ascertain any lineal succession by the evidence of surnames, of arms, + and of authentic records. With the first rays of light, <a + href="#linkCnote-71" name="linkCnoteref-71" id="linkCnoteref-71">71</a> we + discern the nobility and opulence of Atho, a French knight; his nobility, + in the rank and title of a nameless father; his opulence, in the + foundation of the castle of Courtenay in the district of Gatinois, about + fifty-six miles to the south of Paris. From the reign of Robert, the son + of Hugh Capet, the barons of Courtenay are conspicuous among the immediate + vassals of the crown; and Joscelin, the grandson of Atho and a noble dame, + is enrolled among the heroes of the first crusade. A domestic alliance + (their mothers were sisters) attached him to the standard of Baldwin of + Bruges, the second count of Edessa; a princely fief, which he was worthy + to receive, and able to maintain, announces the number of his martial + followers; and after the departure of his cousin, Joscelin himself was + invested with the county of Edessa on both sides of the Euphrates. By + economy in peace, his territories were replenished with Latin and Syrian + subjects; his magazines with corn, wine, and oil; his castles with gold + and silver, with arms and horses. In a holy warfare of thirty years, he + was alternately a conqueror and a captive: but he died like a soldier, in + a horse litter at the head of his troops; and his last glance beheld the + flight of the Turkish invaders who had presumed on his age and + infirmities. His son and successor, of the same name, was less deficient + in valor than in vigilance; but he sometimes forgot that dominion is + acquired and maintained by the same arms. He challenged the hostility of + the Turks, without securing the friendship of the prince of Antioch; and, + amidst the peaceful luxury of Turbessel, in Syria, <a href="#linkCnote-72" + name="linkCnoteref-72" id="linkCnoteref-72">72</a> Joscelin neglected the + defence of the Christian frontier beyond the Euphrates. In his absence, + Zenghi, the first of the Atabeks, besieged and stormed his capital, + Edessa, which was feebly defended by a timorous and disloyal crowd of + Orientals: the Franks were oppressed in a bold attempt for its recovery, + and Courtenay ended his days in the prison of Aleppo. He still left a fair + and ample patrimony But the victorious Turks oppressed on all sides the + weakness of a widow and orphan; and, for the equivalent of an annual + pension, they resigned to the Greek emperor the charge of defending, and + the shame of losing, the last relics of the Latin conquest. The + countess-dowager of Edessa retired to Jerusalem with her two children; the + daughter, Agnes, became the wife and mother of a king; the son, Joscelin + the Third, accepted the office of seneschal, the first of the kingdom, and + held his new estates in Palestine by the service of fifty knights. His + name appears with honor in the transactions of peace and war; but he + finally vanishes in the fall of Jerusalem; and the name of Courtenay, in + this branch of Edessa, was lost by the marriage of his two daughters with + a French and German baron. <a href="#linkCnote-73" name="linkCnoteref-73" + id="linkCnoteref-73">73</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-71" id="linkCnote-71"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 71 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-71">return</a>)<br /> [ The primitive record of + the family is a passage of the continuator of Aimoin, a monk of Fleury, + who wrote in the xiith century. See his Chronicle, in the Historians of + France, (tom. xi. p. 276.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-72" id="linkCnote-72"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 72 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-72">return</a>)<br /> [ Turbessel, or, as it is + now styled, Telbesher, is fixed by D'Anville four-and-twenty miles from + the great passage over the Euphrates at Zeugma.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-73" id="linkCnote-73"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 73 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-73">return</a>)<br /> [ His possessions are + distinguished in the Assises of Jerusalem (c. B26) among the feudal + tenures of the kingdom, which must therefore have been collected between + the years 1153 and 1187. His pedigree may be found in the Lignages + d'Outremer, c. 16.] + </p> + <p> + II. While Joscelin reigned beyond the Euphrates, his elder brother Milo, + the son of Joscelin, the son of Atho, continued, near the Seine, to + possess the castle of their fathers, which was at length inherited by + Rainaud, or Reginald, the youngest of his three sons. Examples of genius + or virtue must be rare in the annals of the oldest families; and, in a + remote age their pride will embrace a deed of rapine and violence; such, + however, as could not be perpetrated without some superiority of courage, + or, at least, of power. A descendant of Reginald of Courtenay may blush + for the public robber, who stripped and imprisoned several merchants, + after they had satisfied the king's duties at Sens and Orleans. He will + glory in the offence, since the bold offender could not be compelled to + obedience and restitution, till the regent and the count of Champagne + prepared to march against him at the head of an army. <a + href="#linkCnote-74" name="linkCnoteref-74" id="linkCnoteref-74">74</a> + Reginald bestowed his estates on his eldest daughter, and his daughter on + the seventh son of King Louis the Fat; and their marriage was crowned with + a numerous offspring. We might expect that a private should have merged in + a royal name; and that the descendants of Peter of France and Elizabeth of + Courtenay would have enjoyed the titles and honors of princes of the + blood. But this legitimate claim was long neglected, and finally denied; + and the causes of their disgrace will represent the story of this second + branch. <i>1.</i> Of all the families now extant, the most ancient, + doubtless, and the most illustrious, is the house of France, which has + occupied the same throne above eight hundred years, and descends, in a + clear and lineal series of males, from the middle of the ninth century. <a + href="#linkCnote-75" name="linkCnoteref-75" id="linkCnoteref-75">75</a> In + the age of the crusades, it was already revered both in the East and West. + But from Hugh Capet to the marriage of Peter, no more than five reigns or + generations had elapsed; and so precarious was their title, that the + eldest sons, as a necessary precaution, were previously crowned during the + lifetime of their fathers. The peers of France have long maintained their + precedency before the younger branches of the royal line, nor had the + princes of the blood, in the twelfth century, acquired that hereditary + lustre which is now diffused over the most remote candidates for the + succession. <i>2.</i> The barons of Courtenay must have stood high in + their own estimation, and in that of the world, since they could impose on + the son of a king the obligation of adopting for himself and all his + descendants the name and arms of their daughter and his wife. In the + marriage of an heiress with her inferior or her equal, such exchange was often + required and allowed: but as they continued to diverge from the regal + stem, the sons of Louis the Fat were insensibly confounded with their + maternal ancestors; and the new Courtenays might deserve to forfeit the + honors of their birth, which a motive of interest had tempted them to + renounce. <i>3.</i> The shame was far more permanent than the reward, and + a momentary blaze was followed by a long darkness. The eldest son of these + nuptials, Peter of Courtenay, had married, as I have already mentioned, + the sister of the counts of Flanders, the two first emperors of + Constantinople: he rashly accepted the invitation of the barons of + Romania; his two sons, Robert and Baldwin, successively held and lost the + remains of the Latin empire in the East, and the granddaughter of Baldwin + the Second again mingled her blood with the blood of France and of Valois. + To support the expenses of a troubled and transitory reign, their + patrimonial estates were mortgaged or sold: and the last emperors of + Constantinople depended on the annual charity of Rome and Naples. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-74" id="linkCnote-74"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 74 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-74">return</a>)<br /> [ The rapine and + satisfaction of Reginald de Courtenay, are preposterously arranged in the + Epistles of the abbot and regent Suger, (cxiv. cxvi.,) the best memorials + of the age, (Duchesne, Scriptores Hist. Franc. tom. iv. p. 530.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-75" id="linkCnote-75"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 75 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-75">return</a>)<br /> [ In the beginning of the + xith century, after naming the father and grandfather of Hugh Capet, the + monk Glaber is obliged to add, cujus genus valde in-ante reperitur + obscurum. Yet we are assured that the great-grandfather of Hugh Capet was + Robert the Strong count of Anjou, (A.D. 863—873,) a noble Frank of + Neustria, Neustricus... generosæ stirpis, who was slain in the defence of + his country against the Normans, dum patriæ fines tuebatur. Beyond Robert, + all is conjecture or fable. It is a probable conjecture, that the third + race descended from the second by Childebrand, the brother of Charles + Martel. It is an absurd fable that the second was allied to the first by + the marriage of Ansbert, a Roman senator and the ancestor of St. Arnoul, + with Blitilde, a daughter of Clotaire I. The Saxon origin of the house of + France is an ancient but incredible opinion. See a judicious memoir of M. + de Foncemagne, (Mémoires de l'Académie des Inscriptions, tom. xx. p. 548—579.) + He had promised to declare his own opinion in a second memoir, which has + never appeared.] + </p> + <p> + While the elder brothers dissipated their wealth in romantic adventures, + and the castle of Courtenay was profaned by a plebeian owner, the younger + branches of that adopted name were propagated and multiplied. But their + splendor was clouded by poverty and time: after the decease of Robert, + great butler of France, they descended from princes to barons; the next + generations were confounded with the simple gentry; the descendants of + Hugh Capet could no longer be visible in the rural lords of Tanlay and of + Champignelles. The more adventurous embraced without dishonor the + profession of a soldier: the least active and opulent might sink, like + their cousins of the branch of Dreux, into the condition of peasants. + Their royal descent, in a dark period of four hundred years, became each + day more obsolete and ambiguous; and their pedigree, instead of being + enrolled in the annals of the kingdom, must be painfully searched by the + minute diligence of heralds and genealogists. It was not till the end of + the sixteenth century, on the accession of a family almost as remote as + their own, that the princely spirit of the Courtenays again revived; and + the question of the nobility provoked them to ascertain the royalty of + their blood. They appealed to the justice and compassion of Henry the + Fourth; obtained a favorable opinion from twenty lawyers of Italy and + Germany, and modestly compared themselves to the descendants of King + David, whose prerogatives were not impaired by the lapse of ages or the + trade of a carpenter. <a href="#linkCnote-76" name="linkCnoteref-76" + id="linkCnoteref-76">76</a> But every ear was deaf, and every circumstance + was adverse, to their lawful claims. The Bourbon kings were justified by + the neglect of the Valois; the princes of the blood, more recent and + lofty, disdained the alliance of his humble kindred: the parliament, + without denying their proofs, eluded a dangerous precedent by an arbitrary + distinction, and established St. Louis as the first father of the royal + line. <a href="#linkCnote-77" name="linkCnoteref-77" id="linkCnoteref-77">77</a> + A repetition of complaints and protests was repeatedly disregarded; and + the hopeless pursuit was terminated in the present century by the death of + the last male of the family. <a href="#linkCnote-78" name="linkCnoteref-78" + id="linkCnoteref-78">78</a> Their painful and anxious situation was + alleviated by the pride of conscious virtue: they sternly rejected the + temptations of fortune and favor; and a dying Courtenay would have + sacrificed his son, if the youth could have renounced, for any temporal + interest, the right and title of a legitimate prince of the blood of + France. <a href="#linkCnote-79" name="linkCnoteref-79" id="linkCnoteref-79">79</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-76" id="linkCnote-76"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 76 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-76">return</a>)<br /> [ Of the various + petitions, apologies, &c., published by the princes of Courtenay, I + have seen the three following, all in octavo: 1. De Stirpe et Origine + Domus de Courtenay: addita sunt Responsa celeberrimorum Europæ + Jurisconsultorum; Paris, 1607. 2. Representation du Procedé tenû a + l'instance faicte devant le Roi, par Messieurs de Courtenay, pour la + conservation de l'Honneur et Dignité de leur Maison, branche de la royalle + Maison de France; à Paris, 1613. 3. Representation du subject qui a porté + Messieurs de Salles et de Fraville, de la Maison de Courtenay, à se + retirer hors du Royaume, 1614. It was a homicide, for which the Courtenays + expected to be pardoned, or tried, as princes of the blood.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-77" id="linkCnote-77"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 77 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-77">return</a>)<br /> [ The sense of the + parliaments is thus expressed by Thuanus Principis nomen nusquam in Galliâ + tributum, nisi iis qui per mares e regibus nostris originem repetunt; qui + nunc tantum a Ludovico none beatæ memoriæ numerantur; nam <i>Cortini</i> + et Drocenses, a Ludovico crasso genus ducentes, hodie inter eos minime + recensentur. A distinction of expediency rather than justice. The sanctity + of Louis IX. could not invest him with any special prerogative, and all + the descendants of Hugh Capet must be included in his original compact + with the French nation.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-78" id="linkCnote-78"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 78 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-78">return</a>)<br /> [ The last male of the + Courtenays was Charles Roger, who died in the year 1730, without leaving + any sons. The last female was Helene de Courtenay, who married Louis de + Beaufremont. Her title of Princesse du Sang Royal de France was suppressed + (February 7th, 1737) by an <i>arrêt</i> of the parliament of Paris.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-79" id="linkCnote-79"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 79 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-79">return</a>)<br /> [ The singular anecdote to + which I allude is related in the Recueil des Pieces interessantes et peu + connues, (Maestricht, 1786, in 4 vols. 12mo.;) and the unknown editor + quotes his author, who had received it from Helene de Courtenay, marquise + de Beaufremont.] + </p> + <p> + III. According to the old register of Ford Abbey, the Courtenays of + Devonshire are descended from Prince <i>Florus</i>, the second son of + Peter, and the grandson of Louis the Fat. <a href="#linkCnote-80" + name="linkCnoteref-80" id="linkCnoteref-80">80</a> This fable of the + grateful or venal monks was too respectfully entertained by our + antiquaries, Cambden <a href="#linkCnote-81" name="linkCnoteref-81" + id="linkCnoteref-81">81</a> and Dugdale: <a href="#linkCnote-82" + name="linkCnoteref-82" id="linkCnoteref-82">82</a> but it is so clearly + repugnant to truth and time, that the rational pride of the family now + refuses to accept this imaginary founder. Their most faithful historians + believe, that, after giving his daughter to the king's son, Reginald of + Courtenay abandoned his possessions in France, and obtained from the + English monarch a second wife and a new inheritance. It is certain, at + least, that Henry the Second distinguished in his camps and councils a + Reginald, of the name and arms, and, as it may be fairly presumed, of the + genuine race, of the Courtenays of France. The right of wardship enabled a + feudal lord to reward his vassal with the marriage and estate of a noble + heiress; and Reginald of Courtenay acquired a fair establishment in + Devonshire, where his posterity has been seated above six hundred years. + <a href="#linkCnote-83" name="linkCnoteref-83" id="linkCnoteref-83">83</a> + From a Norman baron, Baldwin de Brioniis, who had been invested by the + Conqueror, Hawise, the wife of Reginald, derived the honor of Okehampton, + which was held by the service of ninety-three knights; and a female might + claim the manly offices of hereditary viscount or sheriff, and of captain + of the royal castle of Exeter. Their son Robert married the sister of the + earl of Devon: at the end of a century, on the failure of the family of + Rivers, <a href="#linkCnote-84" name="linkCnoteref-84" id="linkCnoteref-84">84</a> + his great-grandson, Hugh the Second, succeeded to a title which was still + considered as a territorial dignity; and twelve earls of Devonshire, of + the name of Courtenay, have flourished in a period of two hundred and + twenty years. They were ranked among the chief of the barons of the realm; + nor was it till after a strenuous dispute, that they yielded to the fief + of Arundel the first place in the parliament of England: their alliances + were contracted with the noblest families, the Veres, Despensers, St. + Johns, Talbots, Bohuns, and even the Plantagenets themselves; and in a + contest with John of Lancaster, a Courtenay, bishop of London, and + afterwards archbishop of Canterbury, might be accused of profane + confidence in the strength and number of his kindred. In peace, the earls + of Devon resided in their numerous castles and manors of the west; their + ample revenue was appropriated to devotion and hospitality; and the + epitaph of Edward, surnamed from his misfortune, the <i>blind</i>, from + his virtues, the <i>good</i>, earl, inculcates with much ingenuity a moral + sentence, which may, however, be abused by thoughtless generosity. After a + grateful commemoration of the fifty-five years of union and happiness + which he enjoyed with Mabe his wife, the good earl thus speaks from the + tomb:— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + "What we gave, we have; + What we spent, we had; + What we left, we lost." <a href="#linkCnote-85" name="linkCnoteref-85" + id="linkCnoteref-85">85</a> +</pre> + <p> + But their <i>losses</i>, in this sense, were far superior to their gifts + and expenses; and their heirs, not less than the poor, were the objects of + their paternal care. The sums which they paid for livery and seizin attest + the greatness of their possessions; and several estates have remained in + their family since the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. In war, the + Courtenays of England fulfilled the duties, and deserved the honors, of + chivalry. They were often intrusted to levy and command the militia of + Devonshire and Cornwall; they often attended their supreme lord to the + borders of Scotland; and in foreign service, for a stipulated price, they + sometimes maintained fourscore men-at-arms and as many archers. By sea and + land they fought under the standard of the Edwards and Henries: their + names are conspicuous in battles, in tournaments, and in the original list + of the Order of the Garter; three brothers shared the Spanish victory of + the Black Prince; and in the lapse of six generations, the English + Courtenays had learned to despise the nation and country from which they + derived their origin. In the quarrel of the two roses, the earls of Devon + adhered to the house of Lancaster; and three brothers successively died + either in the field or on the scaffold. Their honors and estates were + restored by Henry the Seventh; a daughter of Edward the Fourth was not + disgraced by the nuptials of a Courtenay; their son, who was created + Marquis of Exeter, enjoyed the favor of his cousin Henry the Eighth; and + in the camp of Cloth of Gold, he broke a lance against the French monarch. + But the favor of Henry was the prelude of disgrace; his disgrace was the + signal of death; and of the victims of the jealous tyrant, the marquis of + Exeter is one of the most noble and guiltless. His son Edward lived a + prisoner in the Tower, and died in exile at Padua; and the secret love of + Queen Mary, whom he slighted, perhaps for the princess Elizabeth, has shed + a romantic color on the story of this beautiful youth. The relics of his + patrimony were conveyed into strange families by the marriages of his four + aunts; and his personal honors, as if they had been legally extinct, were + revived by the patents of succeeding princes. But there still survived a + lineal descendant of Hugh, the first earl of Devon, a younger branch of + the Courtenays, who have been seated at Powderham Castle above four + hundred years, from the reign of Edward the Third to the present hour. + Their estates have been increased by the grant and improvement of lands in + Ireland, and they have been recently restored to the honors of the + peerage. Yet the Courtenays still retain the plaintive motto, which + asserts the innocence, and deplores the fall, of their ancient house. <a + href="#linkCnote-86" name="linkCnoteref-86" id="linkCnoteref-86">86</a> + While they sigh for past greatness, they are doubtless sensible of present + blessings: in the long series of the Courtenay annals, the most splendid + æra is likewise the most unfortunate; nor can an opulent peer of Britain + be inclined to envy the emperors of Constantinople, who wandered over + Europe to solicit alms for the support of their dignity and the defence of + their capital. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-80" id="linkCnote-80"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 80 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-80">return</a>)<br /> [ Dugdale, Monasticon + Anglicanum, vol. i. p. 786. Yet this fable must have been invented before + the reign of Edward III. The profuse devotion of the three first + generations to Ford Abbey was followed by oppression on one side and + ingratitude on the other; and in the sixth generation, the monks ceased to + register the births, actions, and deaths of their patrons.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-81" id="linkCnote-81"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 81 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-81">return</a>)<br /> [ In his Britannia, in the + list of the earls of Devonshire. His expression, e regio sanguine ortos, + credunt, betrays, however, some doubt or suspicion.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-82" id="linkCnote-82"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 82 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-82">return</a>)<br /> [ In his Baronage, P. i. + p. 634, he refers to his own Monasticon. Should he not have corrected the + register of Ford Abbey, and annihilated the phantom Florus, by the + unquestionable evidence of the French historians?] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-83" id="linkCnote-83"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 83 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-83">return</a>)<br /> [ Besides the third and + most valuable book of Cleaveland's History, I have consulted Dugdale, the + father of our genealogical science, (Baronage, P. i. p. 634—643.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-84" id="linkCnote-84"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 84 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-84">return</a>)<br /> [ This great family, de + Ripuariis, de Redvers, de Rivers, ended, in Edward the Fifth's time, in + Isabella de Fortibus, a famous and potent dowager, who long survived her + brother and husband, (Dugdale, Baronage, P i. p. 254—257.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-85" id="linkCnote-85"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 85 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-85">return</a>)<br /> [ Cleaveland p. 142. By + some it is assigned to a Rivers earl of Devon; but the English deCnotes + the xvth, rather than the xiiith century.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkCnote-86" id="linkCnote-86"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 86 (<a href="#linkCnoteref-86">return</a>)<br /> [ <i>Ubi lapsus! Quid + feci?</i> a motto which was probably adopted by the Powderham branch, + after the loss of the earldom of Devonshire, &c. The primitive arms of + the Courtenays were, <i>Or</i>, <i>three torteaux</i>, <i>Gules</i>, which + seem to deCnote their affinity with Godfrey of Bouillon, and the ancient + counts of Boulogne.] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> ======================== <a name="linkD2HCH0001" + id="linkD2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + Chapter LXII: Greek Emperors Of Nice And Constantinople.—Part I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + The Greek Emperors Of Nice And Constantinople.—Elevation + And Reign Of Michael Palæologus.—His False Union With The + Pope And The Latin Church.—Hostile Designs Of Charles Of + Anjou.—Revolt Of Sicily.—War Of The Catalans In Asia And + Greece.—Revolutions And Present State Of Athens. +</pre> + <p> + The loss of Constantinople restored a momentary vigor to the Greeks. From + their palaces, the princes and nobles were driven into the field; and the + fragments of the falling monarchy were grasped by the hands of the most + vigorous or the most skilful candidates. In the long and barren pages of + the Byzantine annals, <a href="#linkDnote-1" name="linkDnoteref-1" + id="linkDnoteref-1">1</a> it would not be an easy task to equal the two + characters of Theodore Lascaris and John Ducas Vataces, <a + href="#linkDnote-2" name="linkDnoteref-2" id="linkDnoteref-2">2</a> who + replanted and upheld the Roman standard at Nice in Bithynia. The + difference of their virtues was happily suited to the diversity of their + situation. In his first efforts, the fugitive Lascaris commanded only + three cities and two thousand soldiers: his reign was the season of + generous and active despair: in every military operation he staked his + life and crown; and his enemies of the Hellespont and the Mæander, were + surprised by his celerity and subdued by his boldness. A victorious reign + of eighteen years expanded the principality of Nice to the magnitude of an + empire. The throne of his successor and son-in-law Vataces was founded on + a more solid basis, a larger scope, and more plentiful resources; and it + was the temper, as well as the interest, of Vataces to calculate the risk, + to expect the moment, and to insure the success, of his ambitious designs. + In the decline of the Latins, I have briefly exposed the progress of the + Greeks; the prudent and gradual advances of a conqueror, who, in a reign + of thirty-three years, rescued the provinces from national and foreign + usurpers, till he pressed on all sides the Imperial city, a leafless and + sapless trunk, which must full at the first stroke of the axe. But his + interior and peaceful administration is still more deserving of notice and + praise. <a href="#linkDnote-3" name="linkDnoteref-3" id="linkDnoteref-3">3</a> + The calamities of the times had wasted the numbers and the substance of + the Greeks; the motives and the means of agriculture were extirpated; and + the most fertile lands were left without cultivation or inhabitants. A + portion of this vacant property was occupied and improved by the command, + and for the benefit, of the emperor: a powerful hand and a vigilant eye + supplied and surpassed, by a skilful management, the minute diligence of a + private farmer: the royal domain became the garden and granary of Asia; + and without impoverishing the people, the sovereign acquired a fund of + innocent and productive wealth. According to the nature of the soil, his + lands were sown with corn or planted with vines; the pastures were filled + with horses and oxen, with sheep and hogs; and when Vataces presented to + the empress a crown of diamonds and pearls, he informed her, with a smile, + that this precious ornament arose from the sale of the eggs of his + innumerable poultry. The produce of his domain was applied to the + maintenance of his palace and hospitals, the calls of dignity and + benevolence: the lesson was still more useful than the revenue: the plough + was restored to its ancient security and honor; and the nobles were taught + to seek a sure and independent revenue from their estates, instead of + adorning their splendid beggary by the oppression of the people, or (what + is almost the same) by the favors of the court. The superfluous stock of + corn and cattle was eagerly purchased by the Turks, with whom Vataces + preserved a strict and sincere alliance; but he discouraged the + importation of foreign manufactures, the costly silks of the East, and the + curious labors of the Italian looms. "The demands of nature and + necessity," was he accustomed to say, "are indispensable; but the + influence of fashion may rise and sink at the breath of a monarch;" and + both his precept and example recommended simplicity of manners and the use + of domestic industry. The education of youth and the revival of learning + were the most serious objects of his care; and, without deciding the + precedency, he pronounced with truth, that a prince and a philosopher <a + href="#linkDnote-4" name="linkDnoteref-4" id="linkDnoteref-4">4</a> are + the two most eminent characters of human society. His first wife was + Irene, the daughter of Theodore Lascaris, a woman more illustrious by her + personal merit, the milder virtues of her sex, than by the blood of the + Angeli and Comneni that flowed in her veins, and transmitted the + inheritance of the empire. After her death he was contracted to Anne, or + Constance, a natural daughter of the emperor Frederic <a + href="#linkDnote-499" name="linkDnoteref-499" id="linkDnoteref-499">499</a> + the Second; but as the bride had not attained the years of puberty, + Vataces placed in his solitary bed an Italian damsel of her train; and his + amorous weakness bestowed on the concubine the honors, though not the + title, of a lawful empress. His frailty was censured as a flagitious and + damnable sin by the monks; and their rude invectives exercised and + displayed the patience of the royal lover. A philosophic age may excuse a + single vice, which was redeemed by a crowd of virtues; and in the review + of his faults, and the more intemperate passions of Lascaris, the judgment + of their contemporaries was softened by gratitude to the second founders + of the empire. <a href="#linkDnote-5" name="linkDnoteref-5" + id="linkDnoteref-5">5</a> The slaves of the Latins, without law or peace, + applauded the happiness of their brethren who had resumed their national + freedom; and Vataces employed the laudable policy of convincing the Greeks + of every dominion that it was their interest to be enrolled in the number + of his subjects. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-1" id="linkDnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ For the reigns of the + Nicene emperors, more especially of John Vataces and his son, their + minister, George Acropolita, is the only genuine contemporary; but George + Pachymer returned to Constantinople with the Greeks at the age of + nineteen, (Hanckius de Script. Byzant. c. 33, 34, p. 564—578. + Fabric. Bibliot. Græc. tom. vi. p. 448—460.) Yet the history of + Nicephorus Gregoras, though of the xivth century, is a valuable narrative + from the taking of Constantinople by the Latins.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-2" id="linkDnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicephorus Gregoras (l. + ii. c. 1) distinguishes between the oxeia ormh of Lascaris, and the + eustaqeia of Vataces. The two portraits are in a very good style.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-3" id="linkDnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer, l. i. c. 23, 24. + Nic. Greg. l. ii. c. 6. The reader of the Byzantines must observe how + rarely we are indulged with such precious details.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-4" id="linkDnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ Monoi gar apantwn anqrwpwn + onomastotatoi basileuV kai jilosojoV, (Greg. Acropol. c. 32.) The emperor, + in a familiar conversation, examined and encouraged the studies of his + future logothete.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-499" id="linkDnote-499"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 499 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-499">return</a>)<br /> [ Sister of Manfred, + afterwards king of Naples. Nic. Greg. p. 45.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-5" id="linkDnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ Compare Acropolita, (c. + 18, 52,) and the two first books of Nicephorus Gregoras.] + </p> + <p> + A strong shade of degeneracy is visible between John Vataces and his son + Theodore; between the founder who sustained the weight, and the heir who + enjoyed the splendor, of the Imperial crown. <a href="#linkDnote-6" + name="linkDnoteref-6" id="linkDnoteref-6">6</a> Yet the character of + Theodore was not devoid of energy; he had been educated in the school of + his father, in the exercise of war and hunting; Constantinople was yet + spared; but in the three years of a short reign, he thrice led his armies + into the heart of Bulgaria. His virtues were sullied by a choleric and + suspicious temper: the first of these may be ascribed to the ignorance of + control; and the second might naturally arise from a dark and imperfect + view of the corruption of mankind. On a march in Bulgaria, he consulted on + a question of policy his principal ministers; and the Greek logothete, + George Acropolita, presumed to offend him by the declaration of a free and + honest opinion. The emperor half unsheathed his cimeter; but his more + deliberate rage reserved Acropolita for a baser punishment. One of the + first officers of the empire was ordered to dismount, stripped of his + robes, and extended on the ground in the presence of the prince and army. + In this posture he was chastised with so many and such heavy blows from + the clubs of two guards or executioners, that when Theodore commanded them + to cease, the great logothete was scarcely able to rise and crawl away to + his tent. After a seclusion of some days, he was recalled by a peremptory + mandate to his seat in council; and so dead were the Greeks to the sense + of honor and shame, that it is from the narrative of the sufferer himself + that we acquire the knowledge of his disgrace. <a href="#linkDnote-7" + name="linkDnoteref-7" id="linkDnoteref-7">7</a> The cruelty of the emperor + was exasperated by the pangs of sickness, the approach of a premature end, + and the suspicion of poison and magic. The lives and fortunes, the eyes + and limbs, of his kinsmen and nobles, were sacrificed to each sally of + passion; and before he died, the son of Vataces might deserve from the + people, or at least from the court, the appellation of tyrant. A matron of + the family of the Palæologi had provoked his anger by refusing to bestow + her beauteous daughter on the vile plebeian who was recommended by his + caprice. Without regard to her birth or age, her body, as high as the + neck, was enclosed in a sack with several cats, who were pricked with pins + to irritate their fury against their unfortunate fellow-captive. In his + last hours the emperor testified a wish to forgive and be forgiven, a just + anxiety for the fate of John his son and successor, who, at the age of + eight years, was condemned to the dangers of a long minority. His last + choice intrusted the office of guardian to the sanctity of the patriarch + Arsenius, and to the courage of George Muzalon, the great domestic, who + was equally distinguished by the royal favor and the public hatred. Since + their connection with the Latins, the names and privileges of hereditary + rank had insinuated themselves into the Greek monarchy; and the noble + families <a href="#linkDnote-8" name="linkDnoteref-8" id="linkDnoteref-8">8</a> + were provoked by the elevation of a worthless favorite, to whose influence + they imputed the errors and calamities of the late reign. In the first + council, after the emperor's death, Muzalon, from a lofty throne, + pronounced a labored apology of his conduct and intentions: his modesty + was subdued by a unanimous assurance of esteem and fidelity; and his most + inveterate enemies were the loudest to salute him as the guardian and + savior of the Romans. Eight days were sufficient to prepare the execution + of the conspiracy. On the ninth, the obsequies of the deceased monarch + were solemnized in the cathedral of Magnesia, <a href="#linkDnote-9" + name="linkDnoteref-9" id="linkDnoteref-9">9</a> an Asiatic city, where he + expired, on the banks of the Hermus, and at the foot of Mount Sipylus. The + holy rites were interrupted by a sedition of the guards; Muzalon, his + brothers, and his adherents, were massacred at the foot of the altar; and + the absent patriarch was associated with a new colleague, with Michael + Palæologus, the most illustrious, in birth and merit, of the Greek nobles. + <a href="#linkDnote-10" name="linkDnoteref-10" id="linkDnoteref-10">10</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-6" id="linkDnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ A Persian saying, that + Cyrus was the <i>father</i> and Darius the <i>master</i>, of his subjects, + was applied to Vataces and his son. But Pachymer (l. i. c. 23) has + mistaken the mild Darius for the cruel Cambyses, despot or tyrant of his + people. By the institution of taxes, Darius had incurred the less odious, + but more contemptible, name of KaphloV, merchant or broker, (Herodotus, + iii. 89.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-7" id="linkDnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ Acropolita (c. 63) seems + to admire his own firmness in sustaining a beating, and not returning to + council till he was called. He relates the exploits of Theodore, and his + own services, from c. 53 to c. 74 of his history. See the third book of + Nicephorus Gregoras.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-8" id="linkDnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer (l. i. c. 21) + names and discriminates fifteen or twenty Greek families, kai osoi alloi, + oiV h megalogenhV seira kai crush sugkekrothto. Does he mean, by this + decoration, a figurative or a real golden chain? Perhaps, both.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-9" id="linkDnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ The old geographers, with + Cellarius and D'Anville, and our travellers, particularly Pocock and + Chandler, will teach us to distinguish the two Magnesias of Asia Minor, of + the Mæander and of Sipylus. The latter, our present object, is still + flourishing for a Turkish city, and lies eight hours, or leagues, to the + north-east of Smyrna, (Tournefort, Voyage du Levant, tom. iii. lettre + xxii. p. 365—370. Chandler's Travels into Asia Minor, p. 267.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-10" id="linkDnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ See Acropolita, (c. 75, + 76, &c.,) who lived too near the times; Pachymer, (l. i. c. 13—25,) + Gregoras, (l. iii. c. 3, 4, 5.)] + </p> + <p> + Of those who are proud of their ancestors, the far greater part must be + content with local or domestic renown; and few there are who dare trust + the memorials of their family to the public annals of their country. As + early as the middle of the eleventh century, the noble race of the + Palæologi <a href="#linkDnote-11" name="linkDnoteref-11" + id="linkDnoteref-11">11</a> stands high and conspicuous in the Byzantine + history: it was the valiant George Palæologus who placed the father of the + Comneni on the throne; and his kinsmen or descendants continue, in each + generation, to lead the armies and councils of the state. The purple was + not dishonored by their alliance, and had the law of succession, and + female succession, been strictly observed, the wife of Theodore Lascaris + must have yielded to her elder sister, the mother of Michael Palæologus, + who afterwards raised his family to the throne. In his person, the + splendor of birth was dignified by the merit of the soldier and statesman: + in his early youth he was promoted to the office of <i>constable</i> or + commander of the French mercenaries; the private expense of a day never + exceeded three pieces of gold; but his ambition was rapacious and profuse; + and his gifts were doubled by the graces of his conversation and manners. + The love of the soldiers and people excited the jealousy of the court, and + Michael thrice escaped from the dangers in which he was involved by his + own imprudence or that of his friends. I. Under the reign of Justice and + Vataces, a dispute arose <a href="#linkDnote-12" name="linkDnoteref-12" + id="linkDnoteref-12">12</a> between two officers, one of whom accused the + other of maintaining the hereditary right of the Palæologi The cause was + decided, according to the new jurisprudence of the Latins, by single + combat; the defendant was overthrown; but he persisted in declaring that + himself alone was guilty; and that he had uttered these rash or + treasonable speeches without the approbation or knowledge of his patron. + Yet a cloud of suspicion hung over the innocence of the constable; he was + still pursued by the whispers of malevolence; and a subtle courtier, the + archbishop of Philadelphia, urged him to accept the judgment of God in the + fiery proof of the ordeal. <a href="#linkDnote-13" name="linkDnoteref-13" + id="linkDnoteref-13">13</a> Three days before the trial, the patient's arm + was enclosed in a bag, and secured by the royal signet; and it was + incumbent on him to bear a red-hot ball of iron three times from the altar + to the rails of the sanctuary, without artifice and without injury. + Palæologus eluded the dangerous experiment with sense and pleasantry. "I + am a soldier," said he, "and will boldly enter the lists with my accusers; + but a layman, a sinner like myself, is not endowed with the gift of + miracles. <i>Your</i> piety, most holy prelate, may deserve the + interposition of Heaven, and from your hands I will receive the fiery + globe, the pledge of my innocence." The archbishop started; the emperor + smiled; and the absolution or pardon of Michael was approved by new + rewards and new services. II. In the succeeding reign, as he held the + government of Nice, he was secretly informed, that the mind of the absent + prince was poisoned with jealousy; and that death, or blindness, would be + his final reward. Instead of awaiting the return and sentence of Theodore, + the constable, with some followers, escaped from the city and the empire; + and though he was plundered by the Turkmans of the desert, he found a + hospitable refuge in the court of the sultan. In the ambiguous state of an + exile, Michael reconciled the duties of gratitude and loyalty: drawing his + sword against the Tartars; admonishing the garrisons of the Roman limit; + and promoting, by his influence, the restoration of peace, in which his + pardon and recall were honorably included. III. While he guarded the West + against the despot of Epirus, Michael was again suspected and condemned in + the palace; and such was his loyalty or weakness, that he submitted to be + led in chains above six hundred miles from Durazzo to Nice. The civility + of the messenger alleviated his disgrace; the emperor's sickness dispelled + his danger; and the last breath of Theodore, which recommended his infant + son, at once acknowledged the innocence and the power of Palæologus. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-11" id="linkDnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ The pedigree of + Palæologus is explained by Ducange, (Famil. Byzant. p. 230, &c.:) the + events of his private life are related by Pachymer (l. i. c. 7—12) + and Gregoras (l. ii. 8, l. iii. 2, 4, l. iv. 1) with visible favor to the + father of the reigning dynasty.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-12" id="linkDnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ Acropolita (c. 50) + relates the circumstances of this curious adventure, which seem to have + escaped the more recent writers.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-13" id="linkDnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer, (l. i. c. 12,) + who speaks with proper contempt of this barbarous trial, affirms, that he + had seen in his youth many person who had sustained, without injury, the + fiery ordeal. As a Greek, he is credulous; but the ingenuity of the Greeks + might furnish some remedies of art or fraud against their own + superstition, or that of their tyrant.] + </p> + <p> + But his innocence had been too unworthily treated, and his power was too + strongly felt, to curb an aspiring subject in the fair field that was + opened to his ambition. <a href="#linkDnote-14" name="linkDnoteref-14" + id="linkDnoteref-14">14</a> In the council, after the death of Theodore, + he was the first to pronounce, and the first to violate, the oath of + allegiance to Muzalon; and so dexterous was his conduct, that he reaped + the benefit, without incurring the guilt, or at least the reproach, of the + subsequent massacre. In the choice of a regent, he balanced the interests + and passions of the candidates; turned their envy and hatred from himself + against each other, and forced every competitor to own, that after his own + claims, those of Palæologus were best entitled to the preference. Under + the title of great duke, he accepted or assumed, during a long minority, + the active powers of government; the patriarch was a venerable name; and + the factious nobles were seduced, or oppressed, by the ascendant of his + genius. The fruits of the economy of Vataces were deposited in a strong + castle on the banks of the Hermus, in the custody of the faithful + Varangians: the constable retained his command or influence over the + foreign troops; he employed the guards to possess the treasure, and the + treasure to corrupt the guards; and whatsoever might be the abuse of the + public money, his character was above the suspicion of private avarice. By + himself, or by his emissaries, he strove to persuade every rank of + subjects, that their own prosperity would rise in just proportion to the + establishment of his authority. The weight of taxes was suspended, the + perpetual theme of popular complaint; and he prohibited the trials by the + ordeal and judicial combat. These Barbaric institutions were already + abolished or undermined in France <a href="#linkDnote-15" + name="linkDnoteref-15" id="linkDnoteref-15">15</a> and England; <a + href="#linkDnote-16" name="linkDnoteref-16" id="linkDnoteref-16">16</a> + and the appeal to the sword offended the sense of a civilized, <a + href="#linkDnote-17" name="linkDnoteref-17" id="linkDnoteref-17">17</a> + and the temper of an unwarlike, people. For the future maintenance of + their wives and children, the veterans were grateful: the priests and the + philosophers applauded his ardent zeal for the advancement of religion and + learning; and his vague promise of rewarding merit was applied by every + candidate to his own hopes. Conscious of the influence of the clergy, + Michael successfully labored to secure the suffrage of that powerful + order. Their expensive journey from Nice to Magnesia, afforded a decent + and ample pretence: the leading prelates were tempted by the liberality of + his nocturnal visits; and the incorruptible patriarch was flattered by the + homage of his new colleague, who led his mule by the bridle into the town, + and removed to a respectful distance the importunity of the crowd. Without + renouncing his title by royal descent, Palæologus encouraged a free + discussion into the advantages of elective monarchy; and his adherents + asked, with the insolence of triumph, what patient would trust his health, + or what merchant would abandon his vessel, to the <i>hereditary</i> skill + of a physician or a pilot? The youth of the emperor, and the impending + dangers of a minority, required the support of a mature and experienced + guardian; of an associate raised above the envy of his equals, and + invested with the name and prerogatives of royalty. For the interest of + the prince and people, without any selfish views for himself or his + family, the great duke consented to guard and instruct the son of + Theodore; but he sighed for the happy moment when he might restore to his + firmer hands the administration of his patrimony, and enjoy the blessings + of a private station. He was first invested with the title and + prerogatives of <i>despot</i>, which bestowed the purple ornaments and the + second place in the Roman monarchy. It was afterwards agreed that John and + Michael should be proclaimed as joint emperors, and raised on the buckler, + but that the preeminence should be reserved for the birthright of the + former. A mutual league of amity was pledged between the royal partners; + and in case of a rupture, the subjects were bound, by their oath of + allegiance, to declare themselves against the aggressor; an ambiguous + name, the seed of discord and civil war. Palæologus was content; but, on + the day of the coronation, and in the cathedral of Nice, his zealous + adherents most vehemently urged the just priority of his age and merit. + The unseasonable dispute was eluded by postponing to a more convenient + opportunity the coronation of John Lascaris; and he walked with a slight + diadem in the train of his guardian, who alone received the Imperial crown + from the hands of the patriarch. It was not without extreme reluctance + that Arsenius abandoned the cause of his pupil; out the Varangians + brandished their battle-axes; a sign of assent was extorted from the + trembling youth; and some voices were heard, that the life of a child + should no longer impede the settlement of the nation. A full harvest of + honors and employments was distributed among his friends by the grateful + Palæologus. In his own family he created a despot and two sebastocrators; + Alexius Strategopulus was decorated with the title of Cæsar; and that + veteran commander soon repaid the obligation, by restoring Constantinople + to the Greek emperor. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-14" id="linkDnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ Without comparing + Pachymer to Thucydides or Tacitus, I will praise his narrative, (l. i. c. + 13—32, l. ii. c. 1—9,) which pursues the ascent of Palæologus + with eloquence, perspicuity, and tolerable freedom. Acropolita is more + cautious, and Gregoras more concise.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-15" id="linkDnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ The judicial combat was + abolished by St. Louis in his own territories; and his example and + authority were at length prevalent in France, (Esprit des Loix, l. xxviii. + c. 29.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-16" id="linkDnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ In civil cases Henry II. + gave an option to the defendant: Glanville prefers the proof by evidence; + and that by judicial combat is reprobated in the Fleta. Yet the trial by + battle has never been abrogated in the English law, and it was ordered by + the judges as late as the beginning of the last century. * Note : And even + demanded in the present.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-17" id="linkDnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ Yet an ingenious friend + has urged to me in mitigation of this practice, 1. <i>That</i> in nations + emerging from barbarism, it moderates the license of private war and + arbitrary revenge. 2. <i>That</i> it is less absurd than the trials by the + ordeal, or boiling water, or the cross, which it has contributed to + abolish. 3. <i>That</i> it served at least as a test of personal courage; + a quality so seldom united with a base disposition, that the danger of a + trial might be some check to a malicious prosecutor, and a useful barrier + against injustice supported by power. The gallant and unfortunate earl of + Surrey might probably have escaped his unmerited fate, had not his demand + of the combat against his accuser been overruled.] + </p> + <p> + It was in the second year of his reign, while he resided in the palace and + gardens of Nymphæum, <a href="#linkDnote-18" name="linkDnoteref-18" + id="linkDnoteref-18">18</a> near Smyrna, that the first messenger arrived + at the dead of night; and the stupendous intelligence was imparted to + Michael, after he had been gently waked by the tender precaution of his + sister Eulogia. The man was unknown or obscure; he produced no letters + from the victorious Cæsar; nor could it easily be credited, after the + defeat of Vataces and the recent failure of Palæologus himself, that the + capital had been surprised by a detachment of eight hundred soldiers. As a + hostage, the doubtful author was confined, with the assurance of death or + an ample recompense; and the court was left some hours in the anxiety of + hope and fear, till the messengers of Alexius arrived with the authentic + intelligence, and displayed the trophies of the conquest, the sword and + sceptre, <a href="#linkDnote-19" name="linkDnoteref-19" + id="linkDnoteref-19">19</a> the buskins and bonnet, <a href="#linkDnote-20" + name="linkDnoteref-20" id="linkDnoteref-20">20</a> of the usurper Baldwin, + which he had dropped in his precipitate flight. A general assembly of the + bishops, senators, and nobles, was immediately convened, and never perhaps + was an event received with more heartfelt and universal joy. In a studied + oration, the new sovereign of Constantinople congratulated his own and the + public fortune. "There was a time," said he, "a far distant time, when the + Roman empire extended to the Adriatic, the Tigris, and the confines of + Æthiopia. After the loss of the provinces, our capital itself, in these + last and calamitous days, has been wrested from our hands by the + Barbarians of the West. From the lowest ebb, the tide of prosperity has + again returned in our favor; but our prosperity was that of fugitives and + exiles: and when we were asked, which was the country of the Romans, we + indicated with a blush the climate of the globe, and the quarter of the + heavens. The divine Providence has now restored to our arms the city of + Constantine, the sacred seat of religion and empire; and it will depend on + our valor and conduct to render this important acquisition the pledge and + omen of future victories." So eager was the impatience of the prince and + people, that Michael made his triumphal entry into Constantinople only + twenty days after the expulsion of the Latins. The golden gate was thrown + open at his approach; the devout conqueror dismounted from his horse; and + a miraculous image of Mary the Conductress was borne before him, that the + divine Virgin in person might appear to conduct him to the temple of her + Son, the cathedral of St. Sophia. But after the first transport of + devotion and pride, he sighed at the dreary prospect of solitude and ruin. + The palace was defiled with smoke and dirt, and the gross intemperance of + the Franks; whole streets had been consumed by fire, or were decayed by + the injuries of time; the sacred and profane edifices were stripped of + their ornaments: and, as if they were conscious of their approaching + exile, the industry of the Latins had been confined to the work of pillage + and destruction. Trade had expired under the pressure of anarchy and + distress, and the numbers of inhabitants had decreased with the opulence + of the city. It was the first care of the Greek monarch to reinstate the + nobles in the palaces of their fathers; and the houses or the ground which + they occupied were restored to the families that could exhibit a legal + right of inheritance. But the far greater part was extinct or lost; the + vacant property had devolved to the lord; he repeopled Constantinople by a + liberal invitation to the provinces; and the brave <i>volunteers</i> were + seated in the capital which had been recovered by their arms. The French + barons and the principal families had retired with their emperor; but the + patient and humble crowd of Latins was attached to the country, and + indifferent to the change of masters. Instead of banishing the factories + of the Pisans, Venetians, and Genoese, the prudent conqueror accepted + their oaths of allegiance, encouraged their industry, confirmed their + privileges, and allowed them to live under the jurisdiction of their + proper magistrates. Of these nations, the Pisans and Venetians preserved + their respective quarters in the city; but the services and power of the + Genoese deserved at the same time the gratitude and the jealousy of the + Greeks. Their independent colony was first planted at the seaport town of + Heraclea in Thrace. They were speedily recalled, and settled in the + exclusive possession of the suburb of Galata, an advantageous post, in + which they revived the commerce, and insulted the majesty, of the + Byzantine empire. <a href="#linkDnote-21" name="linkDnoteref-21" + id="linkDnoteref-21">21</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-18" id="linkDnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ The site of Nymphæum is + not clearly defined in ancient or modern geography. But from the last + hours of Vataces, (Acropolita, c. 52,) it is evident the palace and + gardens of his favorite residence were in the neighborhood of Smyrna. + Nymphæum might be loosely placed in Lydia, (Gregoras, l. vi. 6.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-19" id="linkDnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ This sceptre, the emblem + of justice and power, was a long staff, such as was used by the heroes in + Homer. By the latter Greeks it was named <i>Dicanice</i>, and the Imperial + sceptre was distinguished as usual by the red or purple color.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-20" id="linkDnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ Acropolita affirms (c. + 87,) that this "Onnet" was after the French fashion; but from the ruby at + the point or summit, Ducange (Hist. de C. P. l. v. c. 28, 29) believes + that it was the high-crowned hat of the Greeks. Could Acropolita mistake + the dress of his own court?] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-21" id="linkDnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ See Pachymer, (l. ii. c. + 28—33,) Acropolita, (c. 88,) Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. iv. 7,) and + for the treatment of the subject Latins, Ducange, (l. v. c. 30, 31.)] + </p> + <p> + The recovery of Constantinople was celebrated as the æra of a new empire: + the conqueror, alone, and by the right of the sword, renewed his + coronation in the church of St. Sophia; and the name and honors of John + Lascaris, his pupil and lawful sovereign, were insensibly abolished. But + his claims still lived in the minds of the people; and the royal youth + must speedily attain the years of manhood and ambition. By fear or + conscience, Palæologus was restrained from dipping his hands in innocent + and royal blood; but the anxiety of a usurper and a parent urged him to + secure his throne by one of those imperfect crimes so familiar to the + modern Greeks. The loss of sight incapacitated the young prince for the + active business of the world; instead of the brutal violence of tearing + out his eyes, the visual nerve was destroyed by the intense glare of a + red-hot basin, <a href="#linkDnote-22" name="linkDnoteref-22" + id="linkDnoteref-22">22</a> and John Lascaris was removed to a distant + castle, where he spent many years in privacy and oblivion. Such cool and + deliberate guilt may seem incompatible with remorse; but if Michael could + trust the mercy of Heaven, he was not inaccessible to the reproaches and + vengeance of mankind, which he had provoked by cruelty and treason. His + cruelty imposed on a servile court the duties of applause or silence; but + the clergy had a right to speak in the name of their invisible Master; and + their holy legions were led by a prelate, whose character was above the + temptations of hope or fear. After a short abdication of his dignity, + Arsenius <a href="#linkDnote-23" name="linkDnoteref-23" + id="linkDnoteref-23">23</a> had consented to ascend the ecclesiastical + throne of Constantinople, and to preside in the restoration of the church. + His pious simplicity was long deceived by the arts of Palæologus; and his + patience and submission might soothe the usurper, and protect the safety + of the young prince. On the news of his inhuman treatment, the patriarch + unsheathed the spiritual sword; and superstition, on this occasion, was + enlisted in the cause of humanity and justice. In a synod of bishops, who + were stimulated by the example of his zeal, the patriarch pronounced a + sentence of excommunication; though his prudence still repeated the name + of Michael in the public prayers. The Eastern prelates had not adopted the + dangerous maxims of ancient Rome; nor did they presume to enforce their + censures, by deposing princes, or absolving nations from their oaths of + allegiance. But the Christian, who had been separated from God and the + church, became an object of horror; and, in a turbulent and fanatic + capital, that horror might arm the hand of an assassin, or inflame a + sedition of the people. Palæologus felt his danger, confessed his guilt, + and deprecated his judge: the act was irretrievable; the prize was + obtained; and the most rigorous penance, which he solicited, would have + raised the sinner to the reputation of a saint. The unrelenting patriarch + refused to announce any means of atonement or any hopes of mercy; and + condescended only to pronounce, that for so great a crime, great indeed + must be the satisfaction. "Do you require," said Michael, "that I should + abdicate the empire?" and at these words, he offered, or seemed to offer, + the sword of state. Arsenius eagerly grasped this pledge of sovereignty; + but when he perceived that the emperor was unwilling to purchase + absolution at so dear a rate, he indignantly escaped to his cell, and left + the royal sinner kneeling and weeping before the door. <a + href="#linkDnote-24" name="linkDnoteref-24" id="linkDnoteref-24">24</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-22" id="linkDnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ This milder invention + for extinguishing the sight was tried by the philosopher Democritus on + himself, when he sought to withdraw his mind from the visible world: a + foolish story! The word <i>abacinare</i>, in Latin and Italian, has + furnished Ducange (Gloss. Lat.) with an opportunity to review the various + modes of blinding: the more violent were scooping, burning with an iron, + or hot vinegar, and binding the head with a strong cord till the eyes + burst from their sockets. Ingenious tyrants!] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-23" id="linkDnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ See the first retreat + and restoration of Arsenius, in Pachymer (l. ii. c. 15, l. iii. c. 1, 2) + and Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. iii. c. 1, l. iv. c. 1.) Posterity justly + accused the ajeleia and raqumia of Arsenius the virtues of a hermit, the + vices of a minister, (l. xii. c. 2.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-24" id="linkDnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ The crime and + excommunication of Michael are fairly told by Pachymer (l. iii. c. 10, 14, + 19, &c.) and Gregoras, (l. iv. c. 4.) His confession and penance + restored their freedom.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkD2HCH0002" id="linkD2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXII: Greek Emperors Of Nice And Constantinople.—Part II. + </h2> + <p> + The danger and scandal of this excommunication subsisted above three + years, till the popular clamor was assuaged by time and repentance; till + the brethren of Arsenius condemned his inflexible spirit, so repugnant to + the unbounded forgiveness of the gospel. The emperor had artfully + insinuated, that, if he were still rejected at home, he might seek, in the + Roman pontiff, a more indulgent judge; but it was far more easy and + effectual to find or to place that judge at the head of the Byzantine + church. Arsenius was involved in a vague rumor of conspiracy and + disaffection; <a href="#linkDnote-248" name="linkDnoteref-248" + id="linkDnoteref-248">248</a> some irregular steps in his ordination and + government were liable to censure; a synod deposed him from the episcopal + office; and he was transported under a guard of soldiers to a small island + of the Propontis. Before his exile, he sullenly requested that a strict + account might be taken of the treasures of the church; boasted, that his + sole riches, three pieces of gold, had been earned by transcribing the + psalms; continued to assert the freedom of his mind; and denied, with his + last breath, the pardon which was implored by the royal sinner. <a + href="#linkDnote-25" name="linkDnoteref-25" id="linkDnoteref-25">25</a> + After some delay, Gregory, <a href="#linkDnote-259" name="linkDnoteref-259" + id="linkDnoteref-259">259</a> bishop of Adrianople, was translated to the + Byzantine throne; but his authority was found insufficient to support the + absolution of the emperor; and Joseph, a reverend monk, was substituted to + that important function. This edifying scene was represented in the + presence of the senate and the people; at the end of six years the humble + penitent was restored to the communion of the faithful; and humanity will + rejoice, that a milder treatment of the captive Lascaris was stipulated as + a proof of his remorse. But the spirit of Arsenius still survived in a + powerful faction of the monks and clergy, who persevered about forty-eight + years in an obstinate schism. Their scruples were treated with tenderness + and respect by Michael and his son; and the reconciliation of the + Arsenites was the serious labor of the church and state. In the confidence + of fanaticism, they had proposed to try their cause by a miracle; and when + the two papers, that contained their own and the adverse cause, were cast + into a fiery brazier, they expected that the Catholic verity would be + respected by the flames. Alas! the two papers were indiscriminately + consumed, and this unforeseen accident produced the union of a day, and + renewed the quarrel of an age. <a href="#linkDnote-26" + name="linkDnoteref-26" id="linkDnoteref-26">26</a> The final treaty + displayed the victory of the Arsenites: the clergy abstained during forty + days from all ecclesiastical functions; a slight penance was imposed on + the laity; the body of Arsenius was deposited in the sanctuary; and, in + the name of the departed saint, the prince and people were released from + the sins of their fathers. <a href="#linkDnote-27" name="linkDnoteref-27" + id="linkDnoteref-27">27</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-248" id="linkDnote-248"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 248 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-248">return</a>)<br /> [ Except the omission of + a prayer for the emperor, the charges against Arsenius were of different + nature: he was accused of having allowed the sultan of Iconium to bathe in + vessels signed with the cross, and to have admitted him to the church, + though unbaptized, during the service. It was pleaded, in favor of + Arsenius, among other proofs of the sultan's Christianity, that he had + offered to eat ham. Pachymer, l. iv. c. 4, p. 265. It was after his exile + that he was involved in a charge of conspiracy.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-25" id="linkDnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer relates the + exile of Arsenius, (l. iv. c. 1—16:) he was one of the commissaries + who visited him in the desert island. The last testament of the + unforgiving patriarch is still extant, (Dupin, Bibliothèque + Ecclésiastique, tom. x. p. 95.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-259" id="linkDnote-259"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 259 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-259">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer calls him + Germanus.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-26" id="linkDnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer (l. vii. c. 22) + relates this miraculous trial like a philosopher, and treats with similar + contempt a plot of the Arsenites, to hide a revelation in the coffin of + some old saint, (l. vii. c. 13.) He compensates this incredulity by an + image that weeps, another that bleeds, (l. vii. c. 30,) and the miraculous + cures of a deaf and a mute patient, (l. xi. c. 32.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-27" id="linkDnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ The story of the + Arsenites is spread through the thirteen books of Pachymer. Their union + and triumph are reserved for Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. vii. c. 9,) who + neither loves nor esteems these sectaries.] + </p> + <p> + The establishment of his family was the motive, or at least the pretence, + of the crime of Palæologus; and he was impatient to confirm the + succession, by sharing with his eldest son the honors of the purple. + Andronicus, afterwards surnamed the Elder, was proclaimed and crowned + emperor of the Romans, in the fifteenth year of his age; and, from the + first æra of a prolix and inglorious reign, he held that august title nine + years as the colleague, and fifty as the successor, of his father. Michael + himself, had he died in a private station, would have been thought more + worthy of the empire; and the assaults of his temporal and spiritual + enemies left him few moments to labor for his own fame or the happiness of + his subjects. He wrested from the Franks several of the noblest islands of + the Archipelago, Lesbos, Chios, and Rhodes: his brother Constantine was + sent to command in Malvasia and Sparta; and the eastern side of the Morea, + from Argos and Napoli to Cape Thinners, was repossessed by the Greeks. + This effusion of Christian blood was loudly condemned by the patriarch; + and the insolent priest presumed to interpose his fears and scruples + between the arms of princes. But in the prosecution of these western + conquests, the countries beyond the Hellespont were left naked to the + Turks; and their depredations verified the prophecy of a dying senator, + that the recovery of Constantinople would be the ruin of Asia. The + victories of Michael were achieved by his lieutenants; his sword rusted in + the palace; and, in the transactions of the emperor with the popes and the + king of Naples, his political acts were stained with cruelty and fraud. <a + href="#linkDnote-28" name="linkDnoteref-28" id="linkDnoteref-28">28</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-28" id="linkDnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ Of the xiii books of + Pachymer, the first six (as the ivth and vth of Nicephorus Gregoras) + contain the reign of Michael, at the time of whose death he was forty + years of age. Instead of breaking, like his editor the Père Poussin, his + history into two parts, I follow Ducange and Cousin, who number the xiii. + books in one series.] + </p> + <p> + I. The Vatican was the most natural refuge of a Latin emperor, who had + been driven from his throne; and Pope Urban the Fourth appeared to pity + the misfortunes, and vindicate the cause, of the fugitive Baldwin. A + crusade, with plenary indulgence, was preached by his command against the + schismatic Greeks: he excommunicated their allies and adherents; solicited + Louis the Ninth in favor of his kinsman; and demanded a tenth of the + ecclesiastical revenues of France and England for the service of the holy + war. <a href="#linkDnote-29" name="linkDnoteref-29" id="linkDnoteref-29">29</a> + The subtle Greek, who watched the rising tempest of the West, attempted to + suspend or soothe the hostility of the pope, by suppliant embassies and + respectful letters; but he insinuated that the establishment of peace must + prepare the reconciliation and obedience of the Eastern church. The Roman + court could not be deceived by so gross an artifice; and Michael was + admonished, that the repentance of the son should precede the forgiveness + of the father; and that <i>faith</i> (an ambiguous word) was the only + basis of friendship and alliance. After a long and affected delay, the + approach of danger, and the importunity of Gregory the Tenth, compelled + him to enter on a more serious negotiation: he alleged the example of the + great Vataces; and the Greek clergy, who understood the intentions of + their prince, were not alarmed by the first steps of reconciliation and + respect. But when he pressed the conclusion of the treaty, they + strenuously declared, that the Latins, though not in name, were heretics + in fact, and that they despised those strangers as the vilest and most + despicable portion of the human race. <a href="#linkDnote-30" + name="linkDnoteref-30" id="linkDnoteref-30">30</a> It was the task of the + emperor to persuade, to corrupt, to intimidate the most popular + ecclesiastics, to gain the vote of each individual, and alternately to + urge the arguments of Christian charity and the public welfare. The texts + of the fathers and the arms of the Franks were balanced in the theological + and political scale; and without approving the addition to the Nicene + creed, the most moderate were taught to confess, that the two hostile + propositions of proceeding from the Father by the Son, and of proceeding + from the Father and the Son, might be reduced to a safe and Catholic + sense. <a href="#linkDnote-31" name="linkDnoteref-31" id="linkDnoteref-31">31</a> + The supremacy of the pope was a doctrine more easy to conceive, but more + painful to acknowledge: yet Michael represented to his monks and prelates, + that they might submit to name the Roman bishop as the first of the + patriarchs; and that their distance and discretion would guard the + liberties of the Eastern church from the mischievous consequences of the + right of appeal. He protested that he would sacrifice his life and empire + rather than yield the smallest point of orthodox faith or national + independence; and this declaration was sealed and ratified by a golden + bull. The patriarch Joseph withdrew to a monastery, to resign or resume + his throne, according to the event of the treaty: the letters of union and + obedience were subscribed by the emperor, his son Andronicus, and + thirty-five archbishops and metropolitans, with their respective synods; + and the episcopal list was multiplied by many dioceses which were + annihilated under the yoke of the infidels. An embassy was composed of + some trusty ministers and prelates: they embarked for Italy, with rich + ornaments and rare perfumes for the altar of St. Peter; and their secret + orders authorized and recommended a boundless compliance. They were + received in the general council of Lyons, by Pope Gregory the Tenth, at + the head of five hundred bishops. <a href="#linkDnote-32" + name="linkDnoteref-32" id="linkDnoteref-32">32</a> He embraced with tears + his long-lost and repentant children; accepted the oath of the + ambassadors, who abjured the schism in the name of the two emperors; + adorned the prelates with the ring and mitre; chanted in Greek and Latin + the Nicene creed with the addition of <i>filioque</i>; and rejoiced in the + union of the East and West, which had been reserved for his reign. To + consummate this pious work, the Byzantine deputies were speedily followed + by the pope's nuncios; and their instruction discloses the policy of the + Vatican, which could not be satisfied with the vain title of supremacy. + After viewing the temper of the prince and people, they were enjoined to + absolve the schismatic clergy, who should subscribe and swear their + abjuration and obedience; to establish in all the churches the use of the + perfect creed; to prepare the entrance of a cardinal legate, with the full + powers and dignity of his office; and to instruct the emperor in the + advantages which he might derive from the temporal protection of the Roman + pontiff. <a href="#linkDnote-33" name="linkDnoteref-33" + id="linkDnoteref-33">33</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-29" id="linkDnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducange, Hist. de C. P. + l. v. c. 33, &c., from the Epistles of Urban IV.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-30" id="linkDnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ From their mercantile + intercourse with the Venetians and Genoese, they branded the Latins as + kaphloi and banausoi, (Pachymer, l. v. c. 10.) "Some are heretics in name; + others, like the Latins, in fact," said the learned Veccus, (l. v. c. 12,) + who soon afterwards became a convert (c. 15, 16) and a patriarch, (c. + 24.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-31" id="linkDnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ In this class we may + place Pachymer himself, whose copious and candid narrative occupies the + vth and vith books of his history. Yet the Greek is silent on the council + of Lyons, and seems to believe that the popes always resided in Rome and + Italy, (l. v. c. 17, 21.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-32" id="linkDnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ See the acts of the + council of Lyons in the year 1274. Fleury, Hist. Ecclésiastique, tom. + xviii. p. 181—199. Dupin, Bibliot. Ecclés. tom. x. p. 135.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-33" id="linkDnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ This curious + instruction, which has been drawn with more or less honesty by Wading and + Leo Allatius from the archives of the Vatican, is given in an abstract or + version by Fleury, (tom. xviii. p. 252—258.)] + </p> + <p> + But they found a country without a friend, a nation in which the names of + Rome and Union were pronounced with abhorrence. The patriarch Joseph was + indeed removed: his place was filled by Veccus, an ecclesiastic of + learning and moderation; and the emperor was still urged by the same + motives, to persevere in the same professions. But in his private language + Palæologus affected to deplore the pride, and to blame the innovations, of + the Latins; and while he debased his character by this double hypocrisy, + he justified and punished the opposition of his subjects. By the joint + suffrage of the new and the ancient Rome, a sentence of excommunication + was pronounced against the obstinate schismatics; the censures of the + church were executed by the sword of Michael; on the failure of + persuasion, he tried the arguments of prison and exile, of whipping and + mutilation; those touchstones, says an historian, of cowards and the + brave. Two Greeks still reigned in Ætolia, Epirus, and Thessaly, with the + appellation of despots: they had yielded to the sovereign of + Constantinople, but they rejected the chains of the Roman pontiff, and + supported their refusal by successful arms. Under their protection, the + fugitive monks and bishops assembled in hostile synods; and retorted the + name of heretic with the galling addition of apostate: the prince of + Trebizond was tempted to assume the forfeit title of emperor; <a + href="#linkDnote-339" name="linkDnoteref-339" id="linkDnoteref-339">339</a> + and even the Latins of Negropont, Thebes, Athens, and the Morea, forgot + the merits of the convert, to join, with open or clandestine aid, the + enemies of Palæologus. His favorite generals, of his own blood, and + family, successively deserted, or betrayed, the sacrilegious trust. His + sister Eulogia, a niece, and two female cousins, conspired against him; + another niece, Mary queen of Bulgaria, negotiated his ruin with the sultan + of Egypt; and, in the public eye, their treason was consecrated as the + most sublime virtue. <a href="#linkDnote-34" name="linkDnoteref-34" + id="linkDnoteref-34">34</a> To the pope's nuncios, who urged the + consummation of the work, Palæologus exposed a naked recital of all that + he had done and suffered for their sake. They were assured that the guilty + sectaries, of both sexes and every rank, had been deprived of their + honors, their fortunes, and their liberty; a spreading list of + confiscation and punishment, which involved many persons, the dearest to + the emperor, or the best deserving of his favor. They were conducted to + the prison, to behold four princes of the royal blood chained in the four + corners, and shaking their fetters in an agony of grief and rage. Two of + these captives were afterwards released; the one by submission, the other + by death: but the obstinacy of their two companions was chastised by the + loss of their eyes; and the Greeks, the least adverse to the union, + deplored that cruel and inauspicious tragedy. <a href="#linkDnote-35" + name="linkDnoteref-35" id="linkDnoteref-35">35</a> Persecutors must expect + the hatred of those whom they oppress; but they commonly find some + consolation in the testimony of their conscience, the applause of their + party, and, perhaps, the success of their undertaking. But the hypocrisy + of Michael, which was prompted only by political motives, must have forced + him to hate himself, to despise his followers, and to esteem and envy the + rebel champions by whom he was detested and despised. While his violence + was abhorred at Constantinople, at Rome his slowness was arraigned, and + his sincerity suspected; till at length Pope Martin the Fourth excluded + the Greek emperor from the pale of a church, into which he was striving to + reduce a schismatic people. No sooner had the tyrant expired, than the + union was dissolved, and abjured by unanimous consent; the churches were + purified; the penitents were reconciled; and his son Andronicus, after + weeping the sins and errors of his youth most piously denied his father + the burial of a prince and a Christian. <a href="#linkDnote-36" + name="linkDnoteref-36" id="linkDnoteref-36">36</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-339" id="linkDnote-339"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 339 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-339">return</a>)<br /> [ According to + Fallmarayer he had always maintained this title.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-34" id="linkDnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ This frank and authentic + confession of Michael's distress is exhibited in barbarous Latin by + Ogerius, who signs himself Protonotarius Interpretum, and transcribed by + Wading from the MSS. of the Vatican, (A.D. 1278, No. 3.) His annals of the + Franciscan order, the Fratres Minores, in xvii. volumes in folio, (Rome, + 1741,) I have now accidentally seen among the waste paper of a + bookseller.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-35" id="linkDnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ See the vith book of + Pachymer, particularly the chapters 1, 11, 16, 18, 24—27. He is the + more credible, as he speaks of this persecution with less anger than + sorrow.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-36" id="linkDnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer, l. vii. c. 1—ii. + 17. The speech of Andronicus the Elder (lib. xii. c. 2) is a curious + record, which proves that if the Greeks were the slaves of the emperor, + the emperor was not less the slave of superstition and the clergy.] + </p> + <p> + II. In the distress of the Latins, the walls and towers of Constantinople + had fallen to decay: they were restored and fortified by the policy of + Michael, who deposited a plenteous store of corn and salt provisions, to + sustain the siege which he might hourly expect from the resentment of the + Western powers. Of these, the sovereign of the Two Sicilies was the most + formidable neighbor: but as long as they were possessed by Mainfroy, the + bastard of Frederic the Second, his monarchy was the bulwark, rather than + the annoyance, of the Eastern empire. The usurper, though a brave and + active prince, was sufficiently employed in the defence of his throne: his + proscription by successive popes had separated Mainfroy from the common + cause of the Latins; and the forces that might have besieged + Constantinople were detained in a crusade against the domestic enemy of + Rome. The prize of her avenger, the crown of the Two Sicilies, was won and + worn by the brother of St Louis, by Charles count of Anjou and Provence, + who led the chivalry of France on this holy expedition. <a + href="#linkDnote-37" name="linkDnoteref-37" id="linkDnoteref-37">37</a> + The disaffection of his Christian subjects compelled Mainfroy to enlist a + colony of Saracens whom his father had planted in Apulia; and this odious + succor will explain the defiance of the Catholic hero, who rejected all + terms of accommodation. "Bear this message," said Charles, "to the sultan + of Nocera, that God and the sword are umpire between us; and that he shall + either send me to paradise, or I will send him to the pit of hell." The + armies met: and though I am ignorant of Mainfroy's doom in the other + world, in this he lost his friends, his kingdom, and his life, in the + bloody battle of Benevento. Naples and Sicily were immediately peopled + with a warlike race of French nobles; and their aspiring leader embraced + the future conquest of Africa, Greece, and Palestine. The most specious + reasons might point his first arms against the Byzantine empire; and + Palæologus, diffident of his own strength, repeatedly appealed from the + ambition of Charles to the humanity of St. Louis, who still preserved a + just ascendant over the mind of his ferocious brother. For a while the + attention of that brother was confined at home by the invasion of + Conradin, the last heir to the imperial house of Swabia; but the hapless + boy sunk in the unequal conflict; and his execution on a public scaffold + taught the rivals of Charles to tremble for their heads as well as their + dominions. A second respite was obtained by the last crusade of St. Louis + to the African coast; and the double motive of interest and duty urged the + king of Naples to assist, with his powers and his presence, the holy + enterprise. The death of St. Louis released him from the importunity of a + virtuous censor: the king of Tunis confessed himself the tributary and + vassal of the crown of Sicily; and the boldest of the French knights were + free to enlist under his banner against the Greek empire. A treaty and a + marriage united his interest with the house of Courtenay; his daughter + Beatrice was promised to Philip, son and heir of the emperor Baldwin; a + pension of six hundred ounces of gold was allowed for his maintenance; and + his generous father distributed among his aliens the kingdoms and + provinces of the East, reserving only Constantinople, and one day's + journey round the city for the imperial domain. <a href="#linkDnote-38" + name="linkDnoteref-38" id="linkDnoteref-38">38</a> In this perilous + moment, Palæologus was the most eager to subscribe the creed, and implore + the protection, of the Roman pontiff, who assumed, with propriety and + weight, the character of an angel of peace, the common father of the + Christians. By his voice, the sword of Charles was chained in the + scabbard; and the Greek ambassadors beheld him, in the pope's antechamber, + biting his ivory sceptre in a transport of fury, and deeply resenting the + refusal to enfranchise and consecrate his arms. He appears to have + respected the disinterested mediation of Gregory the Tenth; but Charles + was insensibly disgusted by the pride and partiality of Nicholas the + Third; and his attachment to his kindred, the Ursini family, alienated the + most strenuous champion from the service of the church. The hostile league + against the Greeks, of Philip the Latin emperor, the king of the Two + Sicilies, and the republic of Venice, was ripened into execution; and the + election of Martin the Fourth, a French pope, gave a sanction to the + cause. Of the allies, Philip supplied his name; Martin, a bull of + excommunication; the Venetians, a squadron of forty galleys; and the + formidable powers of Charles consisted of forty counts, ten thousand men + at arms, a numerous body of infantry, and a fleet of more than three + hundred ships and transports. A distant day was appointed for assembling + this mighty force in the harbor of Brindisi; and a previous attempt was + risked with a detachment of three hundred knights, who invaded Albania, + and besieged the fortress of Belgrade. Their defeat might amuse with a + triumph the vanity of Constantinople; but the more sagacious Michael, + despairing of his arms, depended on the effects of a conspiracy; on the + secret workings of a rat, who gnawed the bowstring <a href="#linkDnote-39" + name="linkDnoteref-39" id="linkDnoteref-39">39</a> of the Sicilian tyrant. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-37" id="linkDnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ The best accounts, the + nearest the time, the most full and entertaining, of the conquest of + Naples by Charles of Anjou, may be found in the Florentine Chronicles of + Ricordano Malespina, (c. 175—193,) and Giovanni Villani, (l. vii. c. + 1—10, 25—30,) which are published by Muratori in the viiith + and xiiith volumes of the Historians of Italy. In his Annals (tom. xi. p. + 56—72) he has abridged these great events which are likewise + described in the Istoria Civile of Giannone. tom. l. xix. tom. iii. l. + xx.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-38" id="linkDnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducange, Hist. de C. P. + l. v. c. 49—56, l. vi. c. 1—13. See Pachymer, l. iv. c. 29, l. + v. c. 7—10, 25 l. vi. c. 30, 32, 33, and Nicephorus Gregoras, l. iv. + 5, l. v. 1, 6.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-39" id="linkDnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ The reader of Herodotus + will recollect how miraculously the Assyrian host of Sennacherib was + disarmed and destroyed, (l. ii. c. 141.)] + </p> + <p> + Among the proscribed adherents of the house of Swabia, John of Procida + forfeited a small island of that name in the Bay of Naples. His birth was + noble, but his education was learned; and in the poverty of exile, he was + relieved by the practice of physic, which he had studied in the school of + Salerno. Fortune had left him nothing to lose, except life; and to despise + life is the first qualification of a rebel. Procida was endowed with the + art of negotiation, to enforce his reasons and disguise his motives; and + in his various transactions with nations and men, he could persuade each + party that he labored solely for <i>their</i> interest. The new kingdoms + of Charles were afflicted by every species of fiscal and military + oppression; <a href="#linkDnote-40" name="linkDnoteref-40" + id="linkDnoteref-40">40</a> and the lives and fortunes of his Italian + subjects were sacrificed to the greatness of their master and the + licentiousness of his followers. The hatred of Naples was repressed by his + presence; but the looser government of his vicegerents excited the + contempt, as well as the aversion, of the Sicilians: the island was roused + to a sense of freedom by the eloquence of Procida; and he displayed to + every baron his private interest in the common cause. In the confidence of + foreign aid, he successively visited the courts of the Greek emperor, and + of Peter king of Arragon, <a href="#linkDnote-41" name="linkDnoteref-41" + id="linkDnoteref-41">41</a> who possessed the maritime countries of + Valentia and Catalonia. To the ambitious Peter a crown was presented, + which he might justly claim by his marriage with the sister <a + href="#linkDnote-419" name="linkDnoteref-419" id="linkDnoteref-419">419</a> + of Mainfroy, and by the dying voice of Conradin, who from the scaffold had + cast a ring to his heir and avenger. Palæologus was easily persuaded to + divert his enemy from a foreign war by a rebellion at home; and a Greek + subsidy of twenty-five thousand ounces of gold was most profitably applied + to arm a Catalan fleet, which sailed under a holy banner to the specious + attack of the Saracens of Africa. In the disguise of a monk or beggar, the + indefatigable missionary of revolt flew from Constantinople to Rome, and + from Sicily to Saragossa: the treaty was sealed with the signet of Pope + Nicholas himself, the enemy of Charles; and his deed of gift transferred + the fiefs of St. Peter from the house of Anjou to that of Arragon. So + widely diffused and so freely circulated, the secret was preserved above + two years with impenetrable discretion; and each of the conspirators + imbibed the maxim of Peter, who declared that he would cut off his left + hand if it were conscious of the intentions of his right. The mine was + prepared with deep and dangerous artifice; but it may be questioned, + whether the instant explosion of Palermo were the effect of accident or + design. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-40" id="linkDnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ According to Sabas + Malaspina, (Hist. Sicula, l. iii. c. 16, in Muratori, tom. viii. p. 832,) + a zealous Guelph, the subjects of Charles, who had reviled Mainfroy as a + wolf, began to regret him as a lamb; and he justifies their discontent by + the oppressions of the French government, (l. vi. c. 2, 7.) See the + Sicilian manifesto in Nicholas Specialis, (l. i. c. 11, in Muratori, tom. + x. p. 930.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-41" id="linkDnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ See the character and + counsels of Peter, king of Arragon, in Mariana, (Hist. Hispan. l. xiv. c. + 6, tom. ii. p. 133.) The reader for gives the Jesuit's defects, in favor, + always of his style, and often of his sense.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-419" id="linkDnote-419"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 419 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-419">return</a>)<br /> [ Daughter. See Hallam's + Middle Ages, vol. i. p. 517.—M.] + </p> + <p> + On the vigil of Easter, a procession of the disarmed citizens visited a + church without the walls; and a noble damsel was rudely insulted by a + French soldier. <a href="#linkDnote-42" name="linkDnoteref-42" + id="linkDnoteref-42">42</a> The ravisher was instantly punished with + death; and if the people was at first scattered by a military force, their + numbers and fury prevailed: the conspirators seized the opportunity; the + flame spread over the island; and eight thousand French were exterminated + in a promiscuous massacre, which has obtained the name of the Sicilian + Vespers. <a href="#linkDnote-43" name="linkDnoteref-43" + id="linkDnoteref-43">43</a> From every city the banners of freedom and the + church were displayed: the revolt was inspired by the presence or the soul + of Procida and Peter of Arragon, who sailed from the African coast to + Palermo, was saluted as the king and savior of the isle. By the rebellion + of a people on whom he had so long trampled with impunity, Charles was + astonished and confounded; and in the first agony of grief and devotion, + he was heard to exclaim, "O God! if thou hast decreed to humble me, grant + me at least a gentle and gradual descent from the pinnacle of greatness!" + His fleet and army, which already filled the seaports of Italy, were + hastily recalled from the service of the Grecian war; and the situation of + Messina exposed that town to the first storm of his revenge. Feeble in + themselves, and yet hopeless of foreign succor, the citizens would have + repented, and submitted on the assurance of full pardon and their ancient + privileges. But the pride of the monarch was already rekindled; and the + most fervent entreaties of the legate could extort no more than a promise, + that he would forgive the remainder, after a chosen list of eight hundred + rebels had been yielded to his discretion. The despair of the Messinese + renewed their courage: Peter of Arragon approached to their relief; <a + href="#linkDnote-44" name="linkDnoteref-44" id="linkDnoteref-44">44</a> + and his rival was driven back by the failure of provision and the terrors + of the equinox to the Calabrian shore. At the same moment, the Catalan + admiral, the famous Roger de Loria, swept the channel with an invincible + squadron: the French fleet, more numerous in transports than in galleys, + was either burnt or destroyed; and the same blow assured the independence + of Sicily and the safety of the Greek empire. A few days before his death, + the emperor Michael rejoiced in the fall of an enemy whom he hated and + esteemed; and perhaps he might be content with the popular judgment, that + had they not been matched with each other, Constantinople and Italy must + speedily have obeyed the same master. <a href="#linkDnote-45" + name="linkDnoteref-45" id="linkDnoteref-45">45</a> From this disastrous + moment, the life of Charles was a series of misfortunes: his capital was + insulted, his son was made prisoner, and he sunk into the grave without + recovering the Isle of Sicily, which, after a war of twenty years, was + finally severed from the throne of Naples, and transferred, as an + independent kingdom, to a younger branch of the house of Arragon. <a + href="#linkDnote-46" name="linkDnoteref-46" id="linkDnoteref-46">46</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-42" id="linkDnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ After enumerating the + sufferings of his country, Nicholas Specialis adds, in the true spirit of + Italian jealousy, Quæ omnia et graviora quidem, ut arbitror, patienti + animo Siculi tolerassent, nisi (quod primum cunctis dominantibus cavendum + est) alienas fminas invasissent, (l. i. c. 2, p. 924.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-43" id="linkDnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ The French were long + taught to remember this bloody lesson: "If I am provoked, (said Henry the + Fourth,) I will breakfast at Milan, and dine at Naples." "Your majesty + (replied the Spanish ambassador) may perhaps arrive in Sicily for + vespers."] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-44" id="linkDnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ This revolt, with the + subsequent victory, are related by two national writers, Bartholemy à + Neocastro (in Muratori, tom. xiii.,) and Nicholas Specialis (in Muratori, + tom. x.,) the one a contemporary, the other of the next century. The + patriot Specialis disclaims the name of rebellion, and all previous + correspondence with Peter of Arragon, (nullo communicato consilio,) who <i>happened</i> + to be with a fleet and army on the African coast, (l. i. c. 4, 9.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-45" id="linkDnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicephorus Gregoras (l. + v. c. 6) admires the wisdom of Providence in this equal balance of states + and princes. For the honor of Palæologus, I had rather this balance had + been observed by an Italian writer.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-46" id="linkDnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Chronicle of + Villani, the xith volume of the Annali d'Italia of Muratori, and the xxth + and xxist books of the Istoria Civile of Giannone.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkD2HCH0003" id="linkD2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXII: Greek Emperors Of Nice And Constantinople.—Part III. + </h2> + <p> + I shall not, I trust, be accused of superstition; but I must remark that, + even in this world, the natural order of events will sometimes afford the + strong appearances of moral retribution. The first Palæologus had saved + his empire by involving the kingdoms of the West in rebellion and blood; + and from these scenes of discord uprose a generation of iron men, who + assaulted and endangered the empire of his son. In modern times our debts + and taxes are the secret poison which still corrodes the bosom of peace: + but in the weak and disorderly government of the middle ages, it was + agitated by the present evil of the disbanded armies. Too idle to work, + too proud to beg, the mercenaries were accustomed to a life of rapine: + they could rob with more dignity and effect under a banner and a chief; + and the sovereign, to whom their service was useless, and their presence + importunate, endeavored to discharge the torrent on some neighboring + countries. After the peace of Sicily, many thousands of Genoese, <i>Catalans</i>, + <a href="#linkDnote-47" name="linkDnoteref-47" id="linkDnoteref-47">47</a> + &c., who had fought, by sea and land, under the standard of Anjou or + Arragon, were blended into one nation by the resemblance of their manners + and interest. They heard that the Greek provinces of Asia were invaded by + the Turks: they resolved to share the harvest of pay and plunder: and + Frederic king of Sicily most liberally contributed the means of their + departure. In a warfare of twenty years, a ship, or a camp, was become + their country; arms were their sole profession and property; valor was the + only virtue which they knew; their women had imbibed the fearless temper + of their lovers and husbands: it was reported, that, with a stroke of + their broadsword, the Catalans could cleave a horseman and a horse; and + the report itself was a powerful weapon. Roger de Flor <a + href="#linkDnote-477" name="linkDnoteref-477" id="linkDnoteref-477">477</a> + was the most popular of their chiefs; and his personal merit overshadowed + the dignity of his prouder rivals of Arragon. The offspring of a marriage + between a German gentleman of the court of Frederic the Second and a + damsel of Brindisi, Roger was successively a templar, an apostate, a + pirate, and at length the richest and most powerful admiral of the + Mediterranean. He sailed from Messina to Constantinople, with eighteen + galleys, four great ships, and eight thousand adventurers; <a + href="#linkDnote-478" name="linkDnoteref-478" id="linkDnoteref-478">478</a> + and his previous treaty was faithfully accomplished by Andronicus the + elder, who accepted with joy and terror this formidable succor. A palace + was allotted for his reception, and a niece of the emperor was given in + marriage to the valiant stranger, who was immediately created great duke + or admiral of Romania. After a decent repose, he transported his troops + over the Propontis, and boldly led them against the Turks: in two bloody + battles thirty thousand of the Moslems were slain: he raised the siege of + Philadelphia, and deserved the name of the deliverer of Asia. But after a + short season of prosperity, the cloud of slavery and ruin again burst on + that unhappy province. The inhabitants escaped (says a Greek historian) + from the smoke into the flames; and the hostility of the Turks was less + pernicious than the friendship of the Catalans. <a href="#linkDnote-479" + name="linkDnoteref-479" id="linkDnoteref-479">479</a> The lives and + fortunes which they had rescued they considered as their own: the willing + or reluctant maid was saved from the race of circumcision for the embraces + of a Christian soldier: the exaction of fines and supplies was enforced by + licentious rapine and arbitrary executions; and, on the resistance of + Magnesia, the great duke besieged a city of the Roman empire. <a + href="#linkDnote-48" name="linkDnoteref-48" id="linkDnoteref-48">48</a> + These disorders he excused by the wrongs and passions of a victorious + army; nor would his own authority or person have been safe, had he dared + to punish his faithful followers, who were defrauded of the just and + covenanted price of their services. The threats and complaints of + Andronicus disclosed the nakedness of the empire. His golden bull had + invited no more than five hundred horse and a thousand foot soldiers; yet + the crowds of volunteers, who migrated to the East, had been enlisted and + fed by his spontaneous bounty. While his bravest allies were content with + three byzants or pieces of gold, for their monthly pay, an ounce, or even + two ounces, of gold were assigned to the Catalans, whose annual pension + would thus amount to near a hundred pounds sterling: one of their chiefs + had modestly rated at three hundred thousand crowns the value of his <i>future</i> + merits; and above a million had been issued from the treasury for the + maintenance of these costly mercenaries. A cruel tax had been imposed on + the corn of the husbandman: one third was retrenched from the salaries of + the public officers; and the standard of the coin was so shamefully + debased, that of the four-and-twenty parts only five were of pure gold. <a + href="#linkDnote-49" name="linkDnoteref-49" id="linkDnoteref-49">49</a> At + the summons of the emperor, Roger evacuated a province which no longer + supplied the materials of rapine; <a href="#linkDnote-496" + name="linkDnoteref-496" id="linkDnoteref-496">496</a> but he refused to + disperse his troops; and while his style was respectful, his conduct was + independent and hostile. He protested, that if the emperor should march + against him, he would advance forty paces to kiss the ground before him; + but in rising from this prostrate attitude Roger had a life and sword at + the service of his friends. The great duke of Romania condescended to + accept the title and ornaments of Cæsar; but he rejected the new proposal + of the government of Asia with a subsidy of corn and money, <a + href="#linkDnote-497" name="linkDnoteref-497" id="linkDnoteref-497">497</a> + on condition that he should reduce his troops to the harmless number of + three thousand men. Assassination is the last resource of cowards. The + Cæsar was tempted to visit the royal residence of Adrianople; in the + apartment, and before the eyes, of the empress he was stabbed by the Alani + guards; and though the deed was imputed to their private revenge, <a + href="#linkDnote-498" name="linkDnoteref-498" id="linkDnoteref-498">498</a> + his countrymen, who dwelt at Constantinople in the security of peace, were + involved in the same proscription by the prince or people. The loss of + their leader intimidated the crowd of adventurers, who hoisted the sails + of flight, and were soon scattered round the coasts of the Mediterranean. + But a veteran band of fifteen hundred Catalans, or French, stood firm in + the strong fortress of Gallipoli on the Hellespont, displayed the banners + of Arragon, and offered to revenge and justify their chief, by an equal + combat of ten or a hundred warriors. Instead of accepting this bold + defiance, the emperor Michael, the son and colleague of Andronicus, + resolved to oppress them with the weight of multitudes: every nerve was + strained to form an army of thirteen thousand horse and thirty thousand + foot; and the Propontis was covered with the ships of the Greeks and + Genoese. In two battles by sea and land, these mighty forces were + encountered and overthrown by the despair and discipline of the Catalans: + the young emperor fled to the palace; and an insufficient guard of + light-horse was left for the protection of the open country. Victory + renewed the hopes and numbers of the adventures: every nation was blended + under the name and standard of the <i>great company</i>; and three + thousand Turkish proselytes deserted from the Imperial service to join + this military association. In the possession of Gallipoli, <a + href="#linkDnote-509" name="linkDnoteref-509" id="linkDnoteref-509">509</a> + the Catalans intercepted the trade of Constantinople and the Black Sea, + while they spread their devastation on either side of the Hellespont over + the confines of Europe and Asia. To prevent their approach, the greatest + part of the Byzantine territory was laid waste by the Greeks themselves: + the peasants and their cattle retired into the city; and myriads of sheep + and oxen, for which neither place nor food could be procured, were + unprofitably slaughtered on the same day. Four times the emperor + Andronicus sued for peace, and four times he was inflexibly repulsed, till + the want of provisions, and the discord of the chiefs, compelled the + Catalans to evacuate the banks of the Hellespont and the neighborhood of + the capital. After their separation from the Turks, the remains of the + great company pursued their march through Macedonia and Thessaly, to seek + a new establishment in the heart of Greece. <a href="#linkDnote-50" + name="linkDnoteref-50" id="linkDnoteref-50">50</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-47" id="linkDnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ In this motley + multitude, the Catalans and Spaniards, the bravest of the soldiery, were + styled by themselves and the Greeks <i>Amogavares</i>. Moncada derives + their origin from the Goths, and Pachymer (l. xi. c. 22) from the Arabs; + and in spite of national and religious pride, I am afraid the latter is in + the right.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-477" id="linkDnote-477"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 477 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-477">return</a>)<br /> [ On Roger de Flor and + his companions, see an historical fragment, detailed and interesting, + entitled "The Spaniards of the Fourteenth Century," and inserted in + "L'Espagne en 1808," a work translated from the German, vol. ii. p. 167. + This narrative enables us to detect some slight errors which have crept + into that of Gibbon.—G.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-478" id="linkDnote-478"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 478 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-478">return</a>)<br /> [ The troops of Roger de + Flor, according to his companions Ramon de Montaner, were 1500 men at + arms, 4000 Almogavares, and 1040 other foot, besides the sailors and + mariners, vol. ii. p. 137.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-479" id="linkDnote-479"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 479 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-479">return</a>)<br /> [ Ramon de Montaner + suppresses the cruelties and oppressions of the Catalans, in which, + perhaps, he shared.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-48" id="linkDnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ Some idea may be formed + of the population of these cities, from the 36,000 inhabitants of Tralles, + which, in the preceding reign, was rebuilt by the emperor, and ruined by + the Turks. (Pachymer, l. vi. c. 20, 21.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-49" id="linkDnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ I have collected these + pecuniary circumstances from Pachymer, (l. xi. c. 21, l. xii. c. 4, 5, 8, + 14, 19,) who describes the progressive degradation of the gold coin. Even + in the prosperous times of John Ducas Vataces, the byzants were composed + in equal proportions of the pure and the baser metal. The poverty of + Michael Palæologus compelled him to strike a new coin, with nine parts, or + carats, of gold, and fifteen of copper alloy. After his death, the + standard rose to ten carats, till in the public distress it was reduced to + the moiety. The prince was relieved for a moment, while credit and + commerce were forever blasted. In France, the gold coin is of twenty-two + carats, (one twelfth alloy,) and the standard of England and Holland is + still higher.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-496" id="linkDnote-496"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 496 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-496">return</a>)<br /> [ Roger de Flor, + according to Ramon de Montaner, was recalled from Natolia, on account of + the war which had arisen on the death of Asan, king of Bulgaria. + Andronicus claimed the kingdom for his nephew, the sons of Asan by his + sister. Roger de Flor turned the tide of success in favor of the emperor + of Constantinople and made peace.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-497" id="linkDnote-497"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 497 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-497">return</a>)<br /> [ Andronicus paid the + Catalans in the debased money, much to their indignation.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-498" id="linkDnote-498"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 498 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-498">return</a>)<br /> [ According to Ramon de + Montaner, he was murdered by order of Kyr (kurioV) Michael, son of the + emperor. p. 170.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-509" id="linkDnote-509"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 509 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-509">return</a>)<br /> [ Ramon de Montaner + describes his sojourn at Gallipoli: Nous etions si riches, que nous ne + semions, ni ne labourions, ni ne faisions enver des vins ni ne cultivions + les vignes: et cependant tous les ans nous recucillions tour ce qu'il nous + fallait, en vin, froment et avoine. p. 193. This lasted for five merry + years. Ramon de Montaner is high authority, for he was "chancelier et + maitre rational de l'armée," (commissary of <i>rations</i>.) He was left + governor; all the scribes of the army remained with him, and with their + aid he kept the books in which were registered the number of horse and + foot employed on each expedition. According to this book the plunder was + shared, of which he had a fifth for his trouble. p. 197.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-50" id="linkDnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ The Catalan war is most + copiously related by Pachymer, in the xith, xiith, and xiiith books, till + he breaks off in the year 1308. Nicephorus Gregoras (l. vii. 3—6) is + more concise and complete. Ducange, who adopts these adventurers as + French, has hunted their footsteps with his usual diligence, (Hist. de C. + P. l. vi. c. 22—46.) He quotes an Arragonese history, which I have + read with pleasure, and which the Spaniards extol as a model of style and + composition, (Expedicion de los Catalanes y Arragoneses contra Turcos y + Griegos: Barcelona, 1623 in quarto: Madrid, 1777, in octavo.) Don + Francisco de Moncada Conde de Ossona, may imitate Cæsar or Sallust; he may + transcribe the Greek or Italian contemporaries: but he never quotes his + authorities, and I cannot discern any national records of the exploits of + his countrymen. * Note: Ramon de Montaner, one of the Catalans, who + accompanied Roger de Flor, and who was governor of Gallipoli, has written, + in Spanish, the history of this band of adventurers, to which he belonged, + and from which he separated when it left the Thracian Chersonese to + penetrate into Macedonia and Greece.—G.——The + autobiography of Ramon de Montaner has been published in French by M. + Buchon, in the great collection of Mémoires relatifs à l'Histoire de + France. I quote this edition.—M.] + </p> + <p> + After some ages of oblivion, Greece was awakened to new misfortunes by the + arms of the Latins. In the two hundred and fifty years between the first + and the last conquest of Constantinople, that venerable land was disputed + by a multitude of petty tyrants; without the comforts of freedom and + genius, her ancient cities were again plunged in foreign and intestine + war; and, if servitude be preferable to anarchy, they might repose with + joy under the Turkish yoke. I shall not pursue the obscure and various + dynasties, that rose and fell on the continent or in the isles; but our + silence on the fate of Athens <a href="#linkDnote-51" + name="linkDnoteref-51" id="linkDnoteref-51">51</a> would argue a strange + ingratitude to the first and purest school of liberal science and + amusement. In the partition of the empire, the principality of Athens and + Thebes was assigned to Otho de la Roche, a noble warrior of Burgundy, <a + href="#linkDnote-52" name="linkDnoteref-52" id="linkDnoteref-52">52</a> + with the title of great duke, <a href="#linkDnote-53" + name="linkDnoteref-53" id="linkDnoteref-53">53</a> which the Latins + understood in their own sense, and the Greeks more foolishly derived from + the age of Constantine. <a href="#linkDnote-54" name="linkDnoteref-54" + id="linkDnoteref-54">54</a> Otho followed the standard of the marquis of + Montferrat: the ample state which he acquired by a miracle of conduct or + fortune, <a href="#linkDnote-55" name="linkDnoteref-55" + id="linkDnoteref-55">55</a> was peaceably inherited by his son and two + grandsons, till the family, though not the nation, was changed, by the + marriage of an heiress into the elder branch of the house of Brienne. The + son of that marriage, Walter de Brienne, succeeded to the duchy of Athens; + and, with the aid of some Catalan mercenaries, whom he invested with + fiefs, reduced above thirty castles of the vassal or neighboring lords. + But when he was informed of the approach and ambition of the great + company, he collected a force of seven hundred knights, six thousand four + hundred horse, and eight thousand foot, and boldly met them on the banks + of the River Cephisus in Botia. The Catalans amounted to no more than + three thousand five hundred horse, and four thousand foot; but the + deficiency of numbers was compensated by stratagem and order. They formed + round their camp an artificial inundation; the duke and his knights + advanced without fear or precaution on the verdant meadow; their horses + plunged into the bog; and he was cut in pieces, with the greatest part of + the French cavalry. His family and nation were expelled; and his son + Walter de Brienne, the titular duke of Athens, the tyrant of Florence, and + the constable of France, lost his life in the field of Poitiers Attica and + Botia were the rewards of the victorious Catalans; they married the widows + and daughters of the slain; and during fourteen years, the great company + was the terror of the Grecian states. Their factions drove them to + acknowledge the sovereignty of the house of Arragon; and during the + remainder of the fourteenth century, Athens, as a government or an + appanage, was successively bestowed by the kings of Sicily. After the + French and Catalans, the third dynasty was that of the Accaioli, a family, + plebeian at Florence, potent at Naples, and sovereign in Greece. Athens, + which they embellished with new buildings, became the capital of a state, + that extended over Thebes, Argos, Corinth, Delphi, and a part of Thessaly; + and their reign was finally determined by Mahomet the Second, who + strangled the last duke, and educated his sons in the discipline and + religion of the seraglio. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-51" id="linkDnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ See the laborious + history of Ducange, whose accurate table of the French dynasties + recapitulates the thirty-five passages, in which he mentions the dukes of + Athens.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-52" id="linkDnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ He is twice mentioned by + Villehardouin with honor, (No. 151, 235;) and under the first passage, + Ducange observes all that can be known of his person and family.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-53" id="linkDnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ From these Latin princes + of the xivth century, Boccace, Chaucer. and Shakspeare, have borrowed + their Theseus <i>duke</i> of Athens. An ignorant age transfers its own + language and manners to the most distant times.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-54" id="linkDnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ The same Constantine + gave to Sicily a king, to Russia the <i>magnus dapifer</i> of the empire, + to Thebes the <i>primicerius</i>; and these absurd fables are properly + lashed by Ducange, (ad Nicephor. Greg. l. vii. c. 5.) By the Latins, the + lord of Thebes was styled, by corruption, the Megas Kurios, or Grand + Sire!] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-55" id="linkDnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ <i>Quodam miraculo</i>, + says Alberic. He was probably received by Michael Choniates, the + archbishop who had defended Athens against the tyrant Leo Sgurus, (Nicetas + urbs capta, p. 805, ed. Bek.) Michael was the brother of the historian + Nicetas; and his encomium of Athens is still extant in MS. in the Bodleian + library, (Fabric. Bibliot. Græc tom. vi. p. 405.) * Note: Nicetas says + expressly that Michael surrendered the Acropolis to the marquis.—M.] + </p> + <p> + Athens, <a href="#linkDnote-56" name="linkDnoteref-56" id="linkDnoteref-56">56</a> + though no more than the shadow of her former self, still contains about + eight or ten thousand inhabitants; of these, three fourths are Greeks in + religion and language; and the Turks, who compose the remainder, have + relaxed, in their intercourse with the citizens, somewhat of the pride and + gravity of their national character. The olive-tree, the gift of Minerva, + flourishes in Attica; nor has the honey of Mount Hymettus lost any part of + its exquisite flavor: <a href="#linkDnote-57" name="linkDnoteref-57" + id="linkDnoteref-57">57</a> but the languid trade is monopolized by + strangers, and the agriculture of a barren land is abandoned to the + vagrant Walachians. The Athenians are still distinguished by the subtlety + and acuteness of their understandings; but these qualities, unless + ennobled by freedom, and enlightened by study, will degenerate into a low + and selfish cunning: and it is a proverbial saying of the country, "From + the Jews of Thessalonica, the Turks of Negropont, and the Greeks of + Athens, good Lord deliver us!" This artful people has eluded the tyranny + of the Turkish bashaws, by an expedient which alleviates their servitude + and aggravates their shame. About the middle of the last century, the + Athenians chose for their protector the Kislar Aga, or chief black eunuch + of the seraglio. This Æthiopian slave, who possesses the sultan's ear, + condescends to accept the tribute of thirty thousand crowns: his + lieutenant, the Waywode, whom he annually confirms, may reserve for his + own about five or six thousand more; and such is the policy of the + citizens, that they seldom fail to remove and punish an oppressive + governor. Their private differences are decided by the archbishop, one of + the richest prelates of the Greek church, since he possesses a revenue of + one thousand pounds sterling; and by a tribunal of the eight <i>geronti</i> + or elders, chosen in the eight quarters of the city: the noble families + cannot trace their pedigree above three hundred years; but their principal + members are distinguished by a grave demeanor, a fur cap, and the lofty + appellation of <i>archon</i>. By some, who delight in the contrast, the + modern language of Athens is represented as the most corrupt and barbarous + of the seventy dialects of the vulgar Greek: <a href="#linkDnote-58" + name="linkDnoteref-58" id="linkDnoteref-58">58</a> this picture is too + darkly colored: but it would not be easy, in the country of Plato and + Demosthenes, to find a reader or a copy of their works. The Athenians walk + with supine indifference among the glorious ruins of antiquity; and such + is the debasement of their character, that they are incapable of admiring + the genius of their predecessors. <a href="#linkDnote-59" + name="linkDnoteref-59" id="linkDnoteref-59">59</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-56" id="linkDnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ The modern account of + Athens, and the Athenians, is extracted from Spon, (Voyage en Grece, tom. + ii. p. 79—199,) and Wheeler, (Travels into Greece, p. 337—414,) + Stuart, (Antiquities of Athens, passim,) and Chandler, (Travels into + Greece, p. 23—172.) The first of these travellers visited Greece in + the year 1676; the last, 1765; and ninety years had not produced much + difference in the tranquil scene.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-57" id="linkDnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ The ancients, or at + least the Athenians, believed that all the bees in the world had been + propagated from Mount Hymettus. They taught, that health might be + preserved, and life prolonged, by the external use of oil, and the + internal use of honey, (Geoponica, l. xv. c 7, p. 1089—1094, edit. + Niclas.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-58" id="linkDnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducange, Glossar. Græc. + Præfat. p. 8, who quotes for his author Theodosius Zygomalas, a modern + grammarian. Yet Spon (tom. ii. p. 194) and Wheeler, (p. 355,) no + incompetent judges, entertain a more favorable opinion of the Attic + dialect.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkDnote-59" id="linkDnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkDnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ Yet we must not accuse + them of corrupting the name of Athens, which they still call Athini. From + the eiV thn 'Aqhnhn, we have formed our own barbarism of <i>Setines</i>. * + Note: Gibbon did not foresee a Bavarian prince on the throne of Greece, + with Athens as his capital.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> =================== <a name="linkE2HCH0001" id="linkE2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + Chapter LXIII: Civil Wars And The Ruin Of The Greek Empire.—Part I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Civil Wars, And Ruin Of The Greek Empire.—Reigns Of + Andronicus, The Elder And Younger, And John Palæologus.— + Regency, Revolt, Reign, And Abdication Of John Cantacuzene.— + Establishment Of A Genoese Colony At Pera Or Galata.—Their + Wars With The Empire And City Of Constantinople. +</pre> + <p> + The long reign of Andronicus <a href="#linkEnote-1" name="linkEnoteref-1" + id="linkEnoteref-1">1</a> the elder is chiefly memorable by the disputes + of the Greek church, the invasion of the Catalans, and the rise of the + Ottoman power. He is celebrated as the most learned and virtuous prince of + the age; but such virtue, and such learning, contributed neither to the + perfection of the individual, nor to the happiness of society. A slave of + the most abject superstition, he was surrounded on all sides by visible + and invisible enemies; nor were the flames of hell less dreadful to his + fancy, than those of a Catalan or Turkish war. Under the reign of the + Palæologi, the choice of the patriarch was the most important business of + the state; the heads of the Greek church were ambitious and fanatic monks; + and their vices or virtues, their learning or ignorance, were equally + mischievous or contemptible. By his intemperate discipline, the patriarch + Athanasius <a href="#linkEnote-2" name="linkEnoteref-2" id="linkEnoteref-2">2</a> + excited the hatred of the clergy and people: he was heard to declare, that + the sinner should swallow the last dregs of the cup of penance; and the + foolish tale was propagated of his punishing a sacrilegious ass that had + tasted the lettuce of a convent garden. Driven from the throne by the + universal clamor, Athanasius composed before his retreat two papers of a + very opposite cast. His public testament was in the tone of charity and + resignation; the private codicil breathed the direst anathemas against the + authors of his disgrace, whom he excluded forever from the communion of + the holy trinity, the angels, and the saints. This last paper he enclosed + in an earthen pot, which was placed, by his order, on the top of one of + the pillars, in the dome of St. Sophia, in the distant hope of discovery + and revenge. At the end of four years, some youths, climbing + </p> + <p> + <b> by a ladder in search of pigeons' nests, detected the fatal secret; + and, </b> + </p> + <p> + as Andronicus felt himself touched and bound by the excommunication, he + trembled on the brink of the abyss which had been so treacherously dug + under his feet. A synod of bishops was instantly convened to debate this + important question: the rashness of these clandestine anathemas was + generally condemned; but as the knot could be untied only by the same + hand, as that hand was now deprived of the crosier, it appeared that this + posthumous decree was irrevocable by any earthly power. Some faint + testimonies of repentance and pardon were extorted from the author of the + mischief; but the conscience of the emperor was still wounded, and he + desired, with no less ardor than Athanasius himself, the restoration of a + patriarch, by whom alone he could be healed. At the dead of night, a monk + rudely knocked at the door of the royal bed-chamber, announcing a + revelation of plague and famine, of inundations and earthquakes. + Andronicus started from his bed, and spent the night in prayer, till he + felt, or thought that he felt, a slight motion of the earth. The emperor + on foot led the bishops and monks to the cell of Athanasius; and, after a + proper resistance, the saint, from whom this message had been sent, + consented to absolve the prince, and govern the church of Constantinople. + Untamed by disgrace, and hardened by solitude, the shepherd was again + odious to the flock, and his enemies contrived a singular, and as it + proved, a successful, mode of revenge. In the night, they stole away the + footstool or foot-cloth of his throne, which they secretly replaced with + the decoration of a satirical picture. The emperor was painted with a + bridle in his mouth, and Athanasius leading the tractable beast to the + feet of Christ. The authors of the libel were detected and punished; but + as their lives had been spared, the Christian priest in sullen indignation + retired to his cell; and the eyes of Andronicus, which had been opened for + a moment, were again closed by his successor. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-1" id="linkEnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ Andronicus himself will + justify our freedom in the invective, (Nicephorus Gregoras, l. i. c. i.,) + which he pronounced against historic falsehood. It is true, that his + censure is more pointedly urged against calumny than against adulation.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-2" id="linkEnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ For the anathema in the + pigeon's nest, see Pachymer, (l. ix. c. 24,) who relates the general + history of Athanasius, (l. viii. c. 13—16, 20, 24, l. x. c. 27—29, + 31—36, l. xi. c. 1—3, 5, 6, l. xiii. c. 8, 10, 23, 35,) and is + followed by Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. vi. c. 5, 7, l. vii. c. 1, 9,) who + includes the second retreat of this second Chrysostom.] + </p> + <p> + If this transaction be one of the most curious and important of a reign of + fifty years, I cannot at least accuse the brevity of my materials, since I + reduce into some few pages the enormous folios of Pachymer, <a + href="#linkEnote-3" name="linkEnoteref-3" id="linkEnoteref-3">3</a> + Cantacuzene, <a href="#linkEnote-4" name="linkEnoteref-4" + id="linkEnoteref-4">4</a> and Nicephorus Gregoras, <a href="#linkEnote-5" + name="linkEnoteref-5" id="linkEnoteref-5">5</a> who have composed the + prolix and languid story of the times. The name and situation of the + emperor John Cantacuzene might inspire the most lively curiosity. His + memorials of forty years extend from the revolt of the younger Andronicus + to his own abdication of the empire; and it is observed, that, like Moses + and Cæsar, he was the principal actor in the scenes which he describes. + But in this eloquent work we should vainly seek the sincerity of a hero or + a penitent. Retired in a cloister from the vices and passions of the + world, he presents not a confession, but an apology, of the life of an + ambitious statesman. Instead of unfolding the true counsels and characters + of men, he displays the smooth and specious surface of events, highly + varnished with his own praises and those of his friends. Their motives are + always pure; their ends always legitimate: they conspire and rebel without + any views of interest; and the violence which they inflict or suffer is + celebrated as the spontaneous effect of reason and virtue. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-3" id="linkEnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer, in seven books, + 377 folio pages, describes the first twenty-six years of Andronicus the + Elder; and marks the date of his composition by the current news or lie of + the day, (A.D. 1308.) Either death or disgust prevented him from resuming + the pen.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-4" id="linkEnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ After an interval of + twelve years, from the conclusion of Pachymer, Cantacuzenus takes up the + pen; and his first book (c. 1—59, p. 9—150) relates the civil + war, and the eight last years of the elder Andronicus. The ingenious + comparison with Moses and Cæsar is fancied by his French translator, the + president Cousin.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-5" id="linkEnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicephorus Gregoras more + briefly includes the entire life and reign of Andronicus the elder, (l. + vi. c. 1, p. 96—291.) This is the part of which Cantacuzene + complains as a false and malicious representation of his conduct.] + </p> + <p> + After the example of the first of the Palæologi, the elder Andronicus + associated his son Michael to the honors of the purple; and from the age + of eighteen to his premature death, that prince was acknowledged, above + twenty-five years, as the second emperor of the Greeks. <a + href="#linkEnote-6" name="linkEnoteref-6" id="linkEnoteref-6">6</a> At the + head of an army, he excited neither the fears of the enemy, nor the + jealousy of the court; his modesty and patience were never tempted to + compute the years of his father; nor was that father compelled to repent + of his liberality either by the virtues or vices of his son. The son of + Michael was named Andronicus from his grandfather, to whose early favor he + was introduced by that nominal resemblance. The blossoms of wit and beauty + increased the fondness of the elder Andronicus; and, with the common + vanity of age, he expected to realize in the second, the hope which had + been disappointed in the first, generation. The boy was educated in the + palace as an heir and a favorite; and in the oaths and acclamations of the + people, the <i>august triad</i> was formed by the names of the father, the + son, and the grandson. But the younger Andronicus was speedily corrupted + by his infant greatness, while he beheld with puerile impatience the + double obstacle that hung, and might long hang, over his rising ambition. + It was not to acquire fame, or to diffuse happiness, that he so eagerly + aspired: wealth and impunity were in his eyes the most precious attributes + of a monarch; and his first indiscreet demand was the sovereignty of some + rich and fertile island, where he might lead a life of independence and + pleasure. The emperor was offended by the loud and frequent intemperance + which disturbed his capital; the sums which his parsimony denied were + supplied by the Genoese usurers of Pera; and the oppressive debt, which + consolidated the interest of a faction, could be discharged only by a + revolution. A beautiful female, a matron in rank, a prostitute in manners, + had instructed the younger Andronicus in the rudiments of love; but he had + reason to suspect the nocturnal visits of a rival; and a stranger passing + through the street was pierced by the arrows of his guards, who were + placed in ambush at her door. That stranger was his brother, Prince + Manuel, who languished and died of his wound; and the emperor Michael, + their common father, whose health was in a declining state, expired on the + eighth day, lamenting the loss of both his children. <a href="#linkEnote-7" + name="linkEnoteref-7" id="linkEnoteref-7">7</a> However guiltless in his + intention, the younger Andronicus might impute a brother's and a father's + death to the consequence of his own vices; and deep was the sigh of + thinking and feeling men, when they perceived, instead of sorrow and + repentance, his ill-dissembled joy on the removal of two odious + competitors. By these melancholy events, and the increase of his + disorders, the mind of the elder emperor was gradually alienated; and, + after many fruitless reproofs, he transferred on another grandson <a + href="#linkEnote-8" name="linkEnoteref-8" id="linkEnoteref-8">8</a> his + hopes and affection. The change was announced by the new oath of + allegiance to the reigning sovereign, and the <i>person</i> whom he should + appoint for his successor; and the acknowledged heir, after a repetition + of insults and complaints, was exposed to the indignity of a public trial. + Before the sentence, which would probably have condemned him to a dungeon + or a cell, the emperor was informed that the palace courts were filled + with the armed followers of his grandson; the judgment was softened to a + treaty of reconciliation; and the triumphant escape of the prince + encouraged the ardor of the younger faction. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-6" id="linkEnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ He was crowned May 21st, + 1295, and died October 12th, 1320, (Ducange, Fam. Byz. p. 239.) His + brother Theodore, by a second marriage, inherited the marquisate of + Montferrat, apostatized to the religion and manners of the Latins, (oti + kai gnwmh kai pistei kai schkati, kai geneiwn koura kai pasin eqesin + DatinoV hn akraijnhV. Nic. Greg. l. ix. c. 1,) and founded a dynasty of + Italian princes, which was extinguished A.D. 1533, (Ducange, Fam. Byz. p. + 249—253.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-7" id="linkEnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ We are indebted to + Nicephorus Gregoras (l. viii. c. 1) for the knowledge of this tragic + adventure; while Cantacuzene more discreetly conceals the vices of + Andronicus the Younger, of which he was the witness and perhaps the + associate, (l. i. c. 1, &c.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-8" id="linkEnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ His destined heir was + Michael Catharus, the bastard of Constantine his second son. In this + project of excluding his grandson Andronicus, Nicephorus Gregoras (l. + viii. c. 3) agrees with Cantacuzene, (l. i. c. 1, 2.)] + </p> + <p> + Yet the capital, the clergy, and the senate, adhered to the person, or at + least to the government, of the old emperor; and it was only in the + provinces, by flight, and revolt, and foreign succor, that the + malecontents could hope to vindicate their cause and subvert his throne. + The soul of the enterprise was the great domestic John Cantacuzene; the + sally from Constantinople is the first date of his actions and memorials; + and if his own pen be most descriptive of his patriotism, an unfriendly + historian has not refused to celebrate the zeal and ability which he + displayed in the service of the young emperor. <a href="#linkEnote-89" + name="linkEnoteref-89" id="linkEnoteref-89">89</a> That prince escaped + from the capital under the pretence of hunting; erected his standard at + Adrianople; and, in a few days, assembled fifty thousand horse and foot, + whom neither honor nor duty could have armed against the Barbarians. Such + a force might have saved or commanded the empire; but their counsels were + discordant, their motions were slow and doubtful, and their progress was + checked by intrigue and negotiation. The quarrel of the two Andronici was + protracted, and suspended, and renewed, during a ruinous period of seven + years. In the first treaty, the relics of the Greek empire were divided: + Constantinople, Thessalonica, and the islands, were left to the elder, + while the younger acquired the sovereignty of the greatest part of Thrace, + from Philippi to the Byzantine limit. By the second treaty, he stipulated + the payment of his troops, his immediate coronation, and an adequate share + of the power and revenue of the state. The third civil war was terminated + by the surprise of Constantinople, the final retreat of the old emperor, + and the sole reign of his victorious grandson. The reasons of this delay + may be found in the characters of the men and of the times. When the heir + of the monarchy first pleaded his wrongs and his apprehensions, he was + heard with pity and applause: and his adherents repeated on all sides the + inconsistent promise, that he would increase the pay of the soldiers and + alleviate the burdens of the people. The grievances of forty years were + mingled in his revolt; and the rising generation was fatigued by the + endless prospect of a reign, whose favorites and maxims were of other + times. The youth of Andronicus had been without spirit, his age was + without reverence: his taxes produced an unusual revenue of five hundred + thousand pounds; yet the richest of the sovereigns of Christendom was + incapable of maintaining three thousand horse and twenty galleys, to + resist the destructive progress of the Turks. <a href="#linkEnote-9" + name="linkEnoteref-9" id="linkEnoteref-9">9</a> "How different," said the + younger Andronicus, "is my situation from that of the son of Philip! + Alexander might complain, that his father would leave him nothing to + conquer: alas! my grandsire will leave me nothing to lose." But the Greeks + were soon admonished, that the public disorders could not be healed by a + civil war; and that their young favorite was not destined to be the savior + of a falling empire. On the first repulse, his party was broken by his own + levity, their intestine discord, and the intrigues of the ancient court, + which tempted each malecontent to desert or betray the cause of the + rebellion. Andronicus the younger was touched with remorse, or fatigued + with business, or deceived by negotiation: pleasure rather than power was + his aim; and the license of maintaining a thousand hounds, a thousand + hawks, and a thousand huntsmen, was sufficient to sully his fame and + disarm his ambition. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-89" id="linkEnote-89"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 89 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-89">return</a>)<br /> [ The conduct of + Cantacuzene, by his own showing, was inexplicable. He was unwilling to + dethrone the old emperor, and dissuaded the immediate march on + Constantinople. The young Andronicus, he says, entered into his views, and + wrote to warn the emperor of his danger when the march was determined. + Cantacuzenus, in Nov. Byz. Hist. Collect. vol. i. p. 104, &c.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-9" id="linkEnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ See Nicephorus Gregoras, + l. viii. c. 6. The younger Andronicus complained, that in four years and + four months a sum of 350,000 byzants of gold was due to him for the + expenses of his household, (Cantacuzen l. i. c. 48.) Yet he would have + remitted the debt, if he might have been allowed to squeeze the farmers of + the revenue.] + </p> + <p> + Let us now survey the catastrophe of this busy plot, and the final + situation of the principal actors. <a href="#linkEnote-10" + name="linkEnoteref-10" id="linkEnoteref-10">10</a> The age of Andronicus + was consumed in civil discord; and, amidst the events of war and treaty, + his power and reputation continually decayed, till the fatal night in + which the gates of the city and palace were opened without resistance to + his grandson. His principal commander scorned the repeated warnings of + danger; and retiring to rest in the vain security of ignorance, abandoned + the feeble monarch, with some priests and pages, to the terrors of a + sleepless night. These terrors were quickly realized by the hostile + shouts, which proclaimed the titles and victory of Andronicus the younger; + and the aged emperor, falling prostrate before an image of the Virgin, + despatched a suppliant message to resign the sceptre, and to obtain his + life at the hands of the conqueror. The answer of his grandson was decent + and pious; at the prayer of his friends, the younger Andronicus assumed + the sole administration; but the elder still enjoyed the name and + preeminence of the first emperor, the use of the great palace, and a + pension of twenty-four thousand pieces of gold, one half of which was + assigned on the royal treasury, and the other on the fishery of + Constantinople. But his impotence was soon exposed to contempt and + oblivion; the vast silence of the palace was disturbed only by the cattle + and poultry of the neighborhood, <a href="#linkEnote-101" + name="linkEnoteref-101" id="linkEnoteref-101">101</a> which roved with + impunity through the solitary courts; and a reduced allowance of ten + thousand pieces of gold <a href="#linkEnote-11" name="linkEnoteref-11" + id="linkEnoteref-11">11</a> was all that he could ask, and more than he + could hope. His calamities were imbittered by the gradual extinction of + sight; his confinement was rendered each day more rigorous; and during the + absence and sickness of his grandson, his inhuman keepers, by the threats + of instant death, compelled him to exchange the purple for the monastic + habit and profession. The monk <i>Antony</i> had renounced the pomp of the + world; yet he had occasion for a coarse fur in the winter season, and as + wine was forbidden by his confessor, and water by his physician, the + sherbet of Egypt was his common drink. It was not without difficulty that + the late emperor could procure three or four pieces to satisfy these + simple wants; and if he bestowed the gold to relieve the more painful + distress of a friend, the sacrifice is of some weight in the scale of + humanity and religion. Four years after his abdication, Andronicus or + Antony expired in a cell, in the seventy-fourth year of his age: and the + last strain of adulation could only promise a more splendid crown of glory + in heaven than he had enjoyed upon earth. <a href="#linkEnote-12" + name="linkEnoteref-12" id="linkEnoteref-12">12</a> <a href="#linkEnote-121" + name="linkEnoteref-121" id="linkEnoteref-121">121</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-10" id="linkEnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ I follow the chronology + of Nicephorus Gregoras, who is remarkably exact. It is proved that + Cantacuzene has mistaken the dates of his own actions, or rather that his + text has been corrupted by ignorant transcribers.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-101" id="linkEnote-101"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 101 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-101">return</a>)<br /> [ And the washerwomen, + according to Nic. Gregoras, p. 431.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-11" id="linkEnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ I have endeavored to + reconcile the 24,000 pieces of Cantacuzene (l. ii. c. 1) with the 10,000 + of Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. ix. c. 2;) the one of whom wished to soften, + the other to magnify, the hardships of the old emperor.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-12" id="linkEnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ See Nicephorus Gregoras, + (l. ix. 6, 7, 8, 10, 14, l. x. c. 1.) The historian had tasted of the + prosperity, and shared the retreat, of his benefactor; and that friendship + which "waits or to the scaffold or the cell," should not lightly be + accused as "a hireling, a prostitute to praise." * Note: But it may be + accused of unparalleled absurdity. He compares the extinction of the + feeble old man to that of the sun: his coffin is to be floated like Noah's + ark by a deluge of tears.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-121" id="linkEnote-121"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 121 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-121">return</a>)<br /> [ Prodigies (according + to Nic. Gregoras, p. 460) announced the departure of the old and imbecile + Imperial Monk from his earthly prison.—M.] + </p> + <p> + Nor was the reign of the younger, more glorious or fortunate than that of + the elder, Andronicus. <a href="#linkEnote-13" name="linkEnoteref-13" + id="linkEnoteref-13">13</a> He gathered the fruits of ambition; but the + taste was transient and bitter: in the supreme station he lost the remains + of his early popularity; and the defects of his character became still + more conspicuous to the world. The public reproach urged him to march in + person against the Turks; nor did his courage fail in the hour of trial; + but a defeat and a wound were the only trophies of his expedition in Asia, + which confirmed the establishment of the Ottoman monarchy. The abuses of + the civil government attained their full maturity and perfection: his + neglect of forms, and the confusion of national dresses, are deplored by + the Greeks as the fatal symptoms of the decay of the empire. Andronicus + was old before his time; the intemperance of youth had accelerated the + infirmities of age; and after being rescued from a dangerous malady by + nature, or physic, or the Virgin, he was snatched away before he had + accomplished his forty-fifth year. He was twice married; and, as the + progress of the Latins in arms and arts had softened the prejudices of the + Byzantine court, his two wives were chosen in the princely houses of + Germany and Italy. The first, Agnes at home, Irene in Greece, was daughter + of the duke of Brunswick. Her father <a href="#linkEnote-14" + name="linkEnoteref-14" id="linkEnoteref-14">14</a> was a petty lord <a + href="#linkEnote-15" name="linkEnoteref-15" id="linkEnoteref-15">15</a> in + the poor and savage regions of the north of Germany: <a + href="#linkEnote-16" name="linkEnoteref-16" id="linkEnoteref-16">16</a> + yet he derived some revenue from his silver mines; <a href="#linkEnote-17" + name="linkEnoteref-17" id="linkEnoteref-17">17</a> and his family is + celebrated by the Greeks as the most ancient and noble of the Teutonic + name. <a href="#linkEnote-18" name="linkEnoteref-18" id="linkEnoteref-18">18</a> + After the death of this childish princess, Andronicus sought in marriage + Jane, the sister of the count of Savoy; <a href="#linkEnote-19" + name="linkEnoteref-19" id="linkEnoteref-19">19</a> and his suit was + preferred to that of the French king. <a href="#linkEnote-20" + name="linkEnoteref-20" id="linkEnoteref-20">20</a> The count respected in + his sister the superior majesty of a Roman empress: her retinue was + composed of knights and ladies; she was regenerated and crowned in St. + Sophia, under the more orthodox appellation of Anne; and, at the nuptial + feast, the Greeks and Italians vied with each other in the martial + exercises of tilts and tournaments. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-13" id="linkEnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ The sole reign of + Andronicus the younger is described by Cantacuzene (l. ii. c. 1—40, + p. 191—339) and Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. ix c. 7—l. xi. c. 11, + p. 262—361.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-14" id="linkEnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ Agnes, or Irene, was the + daughter of Duke Henry the Wonderful, the chief of the house of Brunswick, + and the fourth in descent from the famous Henry the Lion, duke of Saxony + and Bavaria, and conqueror of the Sclavi on the Baltic coast. Her brother + Henry was surnamed the <i>Greek</i>, from his two journeys into the East: + but these journeys were subsequent to his sister's marriage; and I am + ignorant <i>how</i> Agnes was discovered in the heart of Germany, and + recommended to the Byzantine court. (Rimius, Memoirs of the House of + Brunswick, p. 126—137.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-15" id="linkEnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ Henry the Wonderful was + the founder of the branch of Grubenhagen, extinct in the year 1596, + (Rimius, p. 287.) He resided in the castle of Wolfenbuttel, and possessed + no more than a sixth part of the allodial estates of Brunswick and + Luneburgh, which the Guelph family had saved from the confiscation of + their great fiefs. The frequent partitions among brothers had almost + ruined the princely houses of Germany, till that just, but pernicious, law + was slowly superseded by the right of primogeniture. The principality of + Grubenhagen, one of the last remains of the Hercynian forest, is a woody, + mountainous, and barren tract, (Busching's Geography, vol. vi. p. 270—286, + English translation.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-16" id="linkEnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ The royal author of the + Memoirs of Brandenburgh will teach us, how justly, in a much later period, + the north of Germany deserved the epithets of poor and barbarous. (Essai + sur les Murs, &c.) In the year 1306, in the woods of Luneburgh, some + wild people of the Vened race were allowed to bury alive their infirm and + useless parents. (Rimius, p. 136.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-17" id="linkEnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ The assertion of + Tacitus, that Germany was destitute of the precious metals, must be taken, + even in his own time, with some limitation, (Germania, c. 5. Annal. xi. + 20.) According to Spener, (Hist. Germaniæ Pragmatica, tom. i. p. 351,) <i>Argentifodin</i> + in Hercyniis montibus, imperante Othone magno (A.D. 968) primum apertæ, + largam etiam opes augendi dederunt copiam: but Rimius (p. 258, 259) defers + till the year 1016 the discovery of the silver mines of Grubenhagen, or + the Upper Hartz, which were productive in the beginning of the xivth + century, and which still yield a considerable revenue to the house of + Brunswick.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-18" id="linkEnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantacuzene has given a + most honorable testimony, hn d' ek Germanvn auth Jugathr doukoV nti + Mprouzouhk, (the modern Greeks employ the nt for the d, and the mp for the + b, and the whole will read in the Italian idiom di Brunzuic,) tou par + autoiV epijanestatou, kai?iamprothti pantaV touV omojulouV uperballontoV. + The praise is just in itself, and pleasing to an English ear.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-19" id="linkEnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ Anne, or Jane, was one + of the four daughters of Amedée the Great, by a second marriage, and + half-sister of his successor Edward count of Savoy. (Anderson's Tables, p. + 650. See Cantacuzene, l. i. c. 40—42.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-20" id="linkEnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ That king, if the fact + be true, must have been Charles the Fair who in five years (1321—1326) + was married to three wives, (Anderson, p. 628.) Anne of Savoy arrived at + Constantinople in February, 1326.] + </p> + <p> + The empress Anne of Savoy survived her husband: their son, John + Palæologus, was left an orphan and an emperor in the ninth year of his + age; and his weakness was protected by the first and most deserving of the + Greeks. The long and cordial friendship of his father for John Cantacuzene + is alike honorable to the prince and the subject. It had been formed + amidst the pleasures of their youth: their families were almost equally + noble; <a href="#linkEnote-21" name="linkEnoteref-21" id="linkEnoteref-21">21</a> + and the recent lustre of the purple was amply compensated by the energy of + a private education. We have seen that the young emperor was saved by + Cantacuzene from the power of his grandfather; and, after six years of + civil war, the same favorite brought him back in triumph to the palace of + Constantinople. Under the reign of Andronicus the younger, the great + domestic ruled the emperor and the empire; and it was by his valor and + conduct that the Isle of Lesbos and the principality of Ætolia were + restored to their ancient allegiance. His enemies confess, that, among the + public robbers, Cantacuzene alone was moderate and abstemious; and the + free and voluntary account which he produces of his own wealth <a + href="#linkEnote-22" name="linkEnoteref-22" id="linkEnoteref-22">22</a> + may sustain the presumption that he was devolved by inheritance, and not + accumulated by rapine. He does not indeed specify the value of his money, + plate, and jewels; yet, after a voluntary gift of two hundred vases of + silver, after much had been secreted by his friends and plundered by his + foes, his forfeit treasures were sufficient for the equipment of a fleet + of seventy galleys. He does not measure the size and number of his + estates; but his granaries were heaped with an incredible store of wheat + and barley; and the labor of a thousand yoke of oxen might cultivate, + according to the practice of antiquity, about sixty-two thousand five + hundred acres of arable land. <a href="#linkEnote-23" + name="linkEnoteref-23" id="linkEnoteref-23">23</a> His pastures were + stocked with two thousand five hundred brood mares, two hundred camels, + three hundred mules, five hundred asses, five thousand horned cattle, + fifty thousand hogs, and seventy thousand sheep: <a href="#linkEnote-24" + name="linkEnoteref-24" id="linkEnoteref-24">24</a> a precious record of + rural opulence, in the last period of the empire, and in a land, most + probably in Thrace, so repeatedly wasted by foreign and domestic + hostility. The favor of Cantacuzene was above his fortune. In the moments + of familiarity, in the hour of sickness, the emperor was desirous to level + the distance between them and pressed his friend to accept the diadem and + purple. The virtue of the great domestic, which is attested by his own + pen, resisted the dangerous proposal; but the last testament of Andronicus + the younger named him the guardian of his son, and the regent of the + empire. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-21" id="linkEnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ The noble race of the + Cantacuzeni (illustrious from the xith century in the Byzantine annals) + was drawn from the Paladins of France, the heroes of those romances which, + in the xiiith century, were translated and read by the Greeks, (Ducange, + Fam. Byzant. p. 258.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-22" id="linkEnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ See Cantacuzene, (l. + iii. c. 24, 30, 36.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-23" id="linkEnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ Saserna, in Gaul, and + Columella, in Italy or Spain, allow two yoke of oxen, two drivers, and six + laborers, for two hundred jugera (125 English acres) of arable land, and + three more men must be added if there be much underwood, (Columella de Re + Rustica, l. ii. c. 13, p 441, edit. Gesner.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-24" id="linkEnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ In this enumeration (l. + iii. c. 30) the French translation of the president Cousin is blotted with + three palpable and essential errors. 1. He omits the 1000 yoke of working + oxen. 2. He interprets the pentakosiai proV diaciliaiV, by the number of + fifteen hundred. * 3. He confounds myriads with chiliads, and gives + Cantacuzene no more than 5000 hogs. Put not your trust in translations! + Note: * There seems to be another reading, ciliaiV. Niebuhr's edit. in + loc.—M.] + </p> + <p> + Had the regent found a suitable return of obedience and gratitude, perhaps + he would have acted with pure and zealous fidelity in the service of his + pupil. <a href="#linkEnote-25" name="linkEnoteref-25" id="linkEnoteref-25">25</a> + A guard of five hundred soldiers watched over his person and the palace; + the funeral of the late emperor was decently performed; the capital was + silent and submissive; and five hundred letters, which Cantacuzene + despatched in the first month, informed the provinces of their loss and + their duty. The prospect of a tranquil minority was blasted by the great + duke or admiral Apocaucus, and to exaggerate <i>his</i> perfidy, the + Imperial historian is pleased to magnify his own imprudence, in raising + him to that office against the advice of his more sagacious sovereign. + Bold and subtle, rapacious and profuse, the avarice and ambition of + Apocaucus were by turns subservient to each other; and his talents were + applied to the ruin of his country. His arrogance was heightened by the + command of a naval force and an impregnable castle, and under the mask of + oaths and flattery he secretly conspired against his benefactor. The + female court of the empress was bribed and directed; he encouraged Anne of + Savoy to assert, by the law of nature, the tutelage of her son; the love + of power was disguised by the anxiety of maternal tenderness: and the + founder of the Palæologi had instructed his posterity to dread the example + of a perfidious guardian. The patriarch John of Apri was a proud and + feeble old man, encompassed by a numerous and hungry kindred. He produced + an obsolete epistle of Andronicus, which bequeathed the prince and people + to his pious care: the fate of his predecessor Arsenius prompted him to + prevent, rather than punish, the crimes of a usurper; and Apocaucus smiled + at the success of his own flattery, when he beheld the Byzantine priest + assuming the state and temporal claims of the Roman pontiff. <a + href="#linkEnote-26" name="linkEnoteref-26" id="linkEnoteref-26">26</a> + Between three persons so different in their situation and character, a + private league was concluded: a shadow of authority was restored to the + senate; and the people was tempted by the name of freedom. By this + powerful confederacy, the great domestic was assaulted at first with + clandestine, at length with open, arms. His prerogatives were disputed; + his opinions slighted; his friends persecuted; and his safety was + threatened both in the camp and city. In his absence on the public + service, he was accused of treason; proscribed as an enemy of the church + and state; and delivered with all his adherents to the sword of justice, + the vengeance of the people, and the power of the devil; his fortunes were + confiscated; his aged mother was cast into prison; <a href="#linkEnote-261" + name="linkEnoteref-261" id="linkEnoteref-261">261</a> all his past + services were buried in oblivion; and he was driven by injustice to + perpetrate the crime of which he was accused. <a href="#linkEnote-27" + name="linkEnoteref-27" id="linkEnoteref-27">27</a> From the review of his + preceding conduct, Cantacuzene appears to have been guiltless of any + treasonable designs; and the only suspicion of his innocence must arise + from the vehemence of his protestations, and the sublime purity which he + ascribes to his own virtue. While the empress and the patriarch still + affected the appearances of harmony, he repeatedly solicited the + permission of retiring to a private, and even a monastic, life. After he + had been declared a public enemy, it was his fervent wish to throw himself + at the feet of the young emperor, and to receive without a murmur the + stroke of the executioner: it was not without reluctance that he listened + to the voice of reason, which inculcated the sacred duty of saving his + family and friends, and proved that he could only save them by drawing the + sword and assuming the Imperial title. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-25" id="linkEnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ See the regency and + reign of John Cantacuzenus, and the whole progress of the civil war, in + his own history, (l. iii. c. 1—100, p. 348—700,) and in that + of Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. xii. c. 1—l. xv. c. 9, p. 353—492.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-26" id="linkEnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ He assumes the royal + privilege of red shoes or buskins; placed on his head a mitre of silk and + gold; subscribed his epistles with hyacinth or green ink, and claimed for + the new, whatever Constantine had given to the ancient, Rome, (Cantacuzen. + l. iii. c. 36. Nic. Gregoras, l. xiv. c. 3.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-261" id="linkEnote-261"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 261 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-261">return</a>)<br /> [ She died there through + persecution and neglect.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-27" id="linkEnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ Nic. Gregoras (l. xii. + c. 5) confesses the innocence and virtues of Cantacuzenus, the guilt and + flagitious vices of Apocaucus; nor does he dissemble the motive of his + personal and religious enmity to the former; nun de dia kakian allwn, + aitioV o praotatoV thV tvn olwn edoxaV? eioai jqoraV. Note: The alloi were + the religious enemies and persecutors of Nicephorus.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkE2HCH0002" id="linkE2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXIII: Civil Wars And The Ruin Of The Greek Empire.—Part II. + </h2> + <p> + In the strong city of Demotica, his peculiar domain, the emperor John + Cantacuzenus was invested with the purple buskins: his right leg was + clothed by his noble kinsmen, the left by the Latin chiefs, on whom he + conferred the order of knighthood. But even in this act of revolt, he was + still studious of loyalty; and the titles of John Palæologus and Anne of + Savoy were proclaimed before his own name and that of his wife Irene. Such + vain ceremony is a thin disguise of rebellion, nor are there perhaps any + personal wrongs that can authorize a subject to take arms against his + sovereign: but the want of preparation and success may confirm the + assurance of the usurper, that this decisive step was the effect of + necessity rather than of choice. Constantinople adhered to the young + emperor; the king of Bulgaria was invited to the relief of Adrianople: the + principal cities of Thrace and Macedonia, after some hesitation, renounced + their obedience to the great domestic; and the leaders of the troops and + provinces were induced, by their private interest, to prefer the loose + dominion of a woman and a priest. <a href="#linkEnote-271" + name="linkEnoteref-271" id="linkEnoteref-271">271</a> The army of + Cantacuzene, in sixteen divisions, was stationed on the banks of the Melas + to tempt or to intimidate the capital: it was dispersed by treachery or + fear; and the officers, more especially the mercenary Latins, accepted the + bribes, and embraced the service, of the Byzantine court. After this loss, + the rebel emperor (he fluctuated between the two characters) took the road + of Thessalonica with a chosen remnant; but he failed in his enterprise on + that important place; and he was closely pursued by the great duke, his + enemy Apocaucus, at the head of a superior power by sea and land. Driven + from the coast, in his march, or rather flight, into the mountains of + Servia, Cantacuzene assembled his troops to scrutinize those who were + worthy and willing to accompany his broken fortunes. A base majority bowed + and retired; and his trusty band was diminished to two thousand, and at + last to five hundred, volunteers. The <i>cral</i>, <a href="#linkEnote-28" + name="linkEnoteref-28" id="linkEnoteref-28">28</a> or despot of the + Servians received him with general hospitality; but the ally was + insensibly degraded to a suppliant, a hostage, a captive; and in this + miserable dependence, he waited at the door of the Barbarian, who could + dispose of the life and liberty of a Roman emperor. The most tempting + offers could not persuade the cral to violate his trust; but he soon + inclined to the stronger side; and his friend was dismissed without injury + to a new vicissitude of hopes and perils. Near six years the flame of + discord burnt with various success and unabated rage: the cities were + distracted by the faction of the nobles and the plebeians; the Cantacuzeni + and Palæologi: and the Bulgarians, the Servians, and the Turks, were + invoked on both sides as the instruments of private ambition and the + common ruin. The regent deplored the calamities, of which he was the + author and victim: and his own experience might dictate a just and lively + remark on the different nature of foreign and civil war. "The former," + said he, "is the external warmth of summer, always tolerable, and often + beneficial; the latter is the deadly heat of a fever, which consumes + without a remedy the vitals of the constitution." <a href="#linkEnote-29" + name="linkEnoteref-29" id="linkEnoteref-29">29</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-271" id="linkEnote-271"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 271 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-271">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantacuzene asserts, + that in all the cities, the populace were on the side of the emperor, the + aristocracy on his. The populace took the opportunity of rising and + plundering the wealthy as Cantacuzenites, vol. iii. c. 29 Ages of common + oppression and ruin had not extinguished these republican factions.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-28" id="linkEnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ The princes of Servia + (Ducange, Famil. Dalmaticæ, &c., c. 2, 3, 4, 9) were styled Despots in + Greek, and Cral in their native idiom, (Ducange, Gloss. Græc. p. 751.) + That title, the equivalent of king, appears to be of Sclavonic origin, + from whence it has been borrowed by the Hungarians, the modern Greeks, and + even by the Turks, (Leunclavius, Pandect. Turc. p. 422,) who reserve the + name of Padishah for the emperor. To obtain the latter instead of the + former is the ambition of the French at Constantinople, (Aversissement à + l'Histoire de Timur Bec, p. 39.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-29" id="linkEnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ Nic. Gregoras, l. xii. + c. 14. It is surprising that Cantacuzene has not inserted this just and + lively image in his own writings.] + </p> + <p> + The introduction of barbarians and savages into the contests of civilized + nations, is a measure pregnant with shame and mischief; which the interest + of the moment may compel, but which is reprobated by the best principles + of humanity and reason. It is the practice of both sides to accuse their + enemies of the guilt of the first alliances; and those who fail in their + negotiations are loudest in their censure of the example which they envy + and would gladly imitate. The Turks of Asia were less barbarous perhaps + than the shepherds of Bulgaria and Servia; but their religion rendered + them implacable foes of Rome and Christianity. To acquire the friendship + of their emirs, the two factions vied with each other in baseness and + profusion: the dexterity of Cantacuzene obtained the preference: but the + succor and victory were dearly purchased by the marriage of his daughter + with an infidel, the captivity of many thousand Christians, and the + passage of the Ottomans into Europe, the last and fatal stroke in the fall + of the Roman empire. The inclining scale was decided in his favor by the + death of Apocaucus, the just though singular retribution of his crimes. A + crowd of nobles or plebeians, whom he feared or hated, had been seized by + his orders in the capital and the provinces; and the old palace of + Constantine was assigned as the place of their confinement. Some + alterations in raising the walls, and narrowing the cells, had been + ingeniously contrived to prevent their escape, and aggravate their misery; + and the work was incessantly pressed by the daily visits of the tyrant. + His guards watched at the gate, and as he stood in the inner court to + overlook the architects, without fear or suspicion, he was assaulted and + laid breathless on the ground, by two <a href="#linkEnote-291" + name="linkEnoteref-291" id="linkEnoteref-291">291</a> resolute prisoners + of the Palæologian race, <a href="#linkEnote-30" name="linkEnoteref-30" + id="linkEnoteref-30">30</a> who were armed with sticks, and animated by + despair. On the rumor of revenge and liberty, the captive multitude broke + their fetters, fortified their prison, and exposed from the battlements + the tyrant's head, presuming on the favor of the people and the clemency + of the empress. Anne of Savoy might rejoice in the fall of a haughty and + ambitious minister, but while she delayed to resolve or to act, the + populace, more especially the mariners, were excited by the widow of the + great duke to a sedition, an assault, and a massacre. The prisoners (of + whom the far greater part were guiltless or inglorious of the deed) + escaped to a neighboring church: they were slaughtered at the foot of the + altar; and in his death the monster was not less bloody and venomous than + in his life. Yet his talents alone upheld the cause of the young emperor; + and his surviving associates, suspicious of each other, abandoned the + conduct of the war, and rejected the fairest terms of accommodation. In + the beginning of the dispute, the empress felt, and complained, that she + was deceived by the enemies of Cantacuzene: the patriarch was employed to + preach against the forgiveness of injuries; and her promise of immortal + hatred was sealed by an oath, under the penalty of excommunication. <a + href="#linkEnote-31" name="linkEnoteref-31" id="linkEnoteref-31">31</a> + But Anne soon learned to hate without a teacher: she beheld the + misfortunes of the empire with the indifference of a stranger: her + jealousy was exasperated by the competition of a rival empress; and on the + first symptoms of a more yielding temper, she threatened the patriarch to + convene a synod, and degrade him from his office. Their incapacity and + discord would have afforded the most decisive advantage; but the civil war + was protracted by the weakness of both parties; and the moderation of + Cantacuzene has not escaped the reproach of timidity and indolence. He + successively recovered the provinces and cities; and the realm of his + pupil was measured by the walls of Constantinople; but the metropolis + alone counterbalanced the rest of the empire; nor could he attempt that + important conquest till he had secured in his favor the public voice and a + private correspondence. An Italian, of the name of Facciolati, <a + href="#linkEnote-32" name="linkEnoteref-32" id="linkEnoteref-32">32</a> + had succeeded to the office of great duke: the ships, the guards, and the + golden gate, were subject to his command; but his humble ambition was + bribed to become the instrument of treachery; and the revolution was + accomplished without danger or bloodshed. Destitute of the powers of + resistance, or the hope of relief, the inflexible Anne would have still + defended the palace, and have smiled to behold the capital in flames, + rather than in the possession of a rival. She yielded to the prayers of + her friends and enemies; and the treaty was dictated by the conqueror, who + professed a loyal and zealous attachment to the son of his benefactor. The + marriage of his daughter with John Palæologus was at length consummated: + the hereditary right of the pupil was acknowledged; but the sole + administration during ten years was vested in the guardian. Two emperors + and three empresses were seated on the Byzantine throne; and a general + amnesty quieted the apprehensions, and confirmed the property, of the most + guilty subjects. The festival of the coronation and nuptials was + celebrated with the appearances of concord and magnificence, and both were + equally fallacious. During the late troubles, the treasures of the state, + and even the furniture of the palace, had been alienated or embezzled; the + royal banquet was served in pewter or earthenware; and such was the proud + poverty of the times, that the absence of gold and jewels was supplied by + the paltry artifices of glass and gilt-leather. <a href="#linkEnote-33" + name="linkEnoteref-33" id="linkEnoteref-33">33</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-291" id="linkEnote-291"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 291 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-291">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicephorus says four, + p.734.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-30" id="linkEnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ The two avengers were + both Palæologi, who might resent, with royal indignation, the shame of + their chains. The tragedy of Apocaucus may deserve a peculiar reference to + Cantacuzene (l. iii. c. 86) and Nic. Gregoras, (l. xiv. c. 10.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-31" id="linkEnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantacuzene accuses the + patriarch, and spares the empress, the mother of his sovereign, (l. iii. + 33, 34,) against whom Nic. Gregoras expresses a particular animosity, (l. + xiv. 10, 11, xv. 5.) It is true that they do not speak exactly of the same + time.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-32" id="linkEnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ The traitor and treason + are revealed by Nic. Gregoras, (l. xv. c. 8;) but the name is more + discreetly suppressed by his great accomplice, (Cantacuzen. l. iii. c. + 99.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-33" id="linkEnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ Nic. Greg. l. xv. 11. + There were, however, some true pearls, but very thinly sprinkled. The rest + of the stones had only pantodaphn croian proV to diaugeV.] + </p> + <p> + I hasten to conclude the personal history of John Cantacuzene. <a + href="#linkEnote-34" name="linkEnoteref-34" id="linkEnoteref-34">34</a> He + triumphed and reigned; but his reign and triumph were clouded by the + discontent of his own and the adverse faction. His followers might style + the general amnesty an act of pardon for his enemies, and of oblivion for + his friends: <a href="#linkEnote-35" name="linkEnoteref-35" + id="linkEnoteref-35">35</a> in his cause their estates had been forfeited + or plundered; and as they wandered naked and hungry through the streets, + they cursed the selfish generosity of a leader, who, on the throne of the + empire, might relinquish without merit his private inheritance. The + adherents of the empress blushed to hold their lives and fortunes by the + precarious favor of a usurper; and the thirst of revenge was concealed by + a tender concern for the succession, and even the safety, of her son. They + were justly alarmed by a petition of the friends of Cantacuzene, that they + might be released from their oath of allegiance to the Palæologi, and + intrusted with the defence of some cautionary towns; a measure supported + with argument and eloquence; and which was rejected (says the Imperial + historian) "by <i>my</i> sublime, and almost incredible virtue." His + repose was disturbed by the sound of plots and seditions; and he trembled + lest the lawful prince should be stolen away by some foreign or domestic + enemy, who would inscribe his name and his wrongs in the banners of + rebellion. As the son of Andronicus advanced in the years of manhood, he + began to feel and to act for himself; and his rising ambition was rather + stimulated than checked by the imitation of his father's vices. If we may + trust his own professions, Cantacuzene labored with honest industry to + correct these sordid and sensual appetites, and to raise the mind of the + young prince to a level with his fortune. In the Servian expedition, the + two emperors showed themselves in cordial harmony to the troops and + provinces; and the younger colleague was initiated by the elder in the + mysteries of war and government. After the conclusion of the peace, + Palæologus was left at Thessalonica, a royal residence, and a frontier + station, to secure by his absence the peace of Constantinople, and to + withdraw his youth from the temptations of a luxurious capital. But the + distance weakened the powers of control, and the son of Andronicus was + surrounded with artful or unthinking companions, who taught him to hate + his guardian, to deplore his exile, and to vindicate his rights. A private + treaty with the cral or despot of Servia was soon followed by an open + revolt; and Cantacuzene, on the throne of the elder Andronicus, defended + the cause of age and prerogative, which in his youth he had so vigorously + attacked. At his request the empress-mother undertook the voyage of + Thessalonica, and the office of mediation: she returned without success; + and unless Anne of Savoy was instructed by adversity, we may doubt the + sincerity, or at least the fervor, of her zeal. While the regent grasped + the sceptre with a firm and vigorous hand, she had been instructed to + declare, that the ten years of his legal administration would soon elapse; + and that, after a full trial of the vanity of the world, the emperor + Cantacuzene sighed for the repose of a cloister, and was ambitious only of + a heavenly crown. Had these sentiments been genuine, his voluntary + abdication would have restored the peace of the empire, and his conscience + would have been relieved by an act of justice. Palæologus alone was + responsible for his future government; and whatever might be his vices, + they were surely less formidable than the calamities of a civil war, in + which the Barbarians and infidels were again invited to assist the Greeks + in their mutual destruction. By the arms of the Turks, who now struck a + deep and everlasting root in Europe, Cantacuzene prevailed in the third + contest in which he had been involved; and the young emperor, driven from + the sea and land, was compelled to take shelter among the Latins of the + Isle of Tenedos. His insolence and obstinacy provoked the victor to a step + which must render the quarrel irreconcilable; and the association of his + son Matthew, whom he invested with the purple, established the succession + in the family of the Cantacuzeni. But Constantinople was still attached to + the blood of her ancient princes; and this last injury accelerated the + restoration of the rightful heir. A noble Genoese espoused the cause of + Palæologus, obtained a promise of his sister, and achieved the revolution + with two galleys and two thousand five hundred auxiliaries. Under the + pretence of distress, they were admitted into the lesser port; a gate was + opened, and the Latin shout of, "Long life and victory to the emperor, + John Palæologus!" was answered by a general rising in his favor. A + numerous and loyal party yet adhered to the standard of Cantacuzene: but + he asserts in his history (does he hope for belief?) that his tender + conscience rejected the assurance of conquest; that, in free obedience to + the voice of religion and philosophy, he descended from the throne and + embraced with pleasure the monastic habit and profession. <a + href="#linkEnote-36" name="linkEnoteref-36" id="linkEnoteref-36">36</a> So + soon as he ceased to be a prince, his successor was not unwilling that he + should be a saint: the remainder of his life was devoted to piety and + learning; in the cells of Constantinople and Mount Athos, the monk Joasaph + was respected as the temporal and spiritual father of the emperor; and if + he issued from his retreat, it was as the minister of peace, to subdue the + obstinacy, and solicit the pardon, of his rebellious son. <a + href="#linkEnote-37" name="linkEnoteref-37" id="linkEnoteref-37">37</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-34" id="linkEnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ From his return to + Constantinople, Cantacuzene continues his history and that of the empire, + one year beyond the abdication of his son Matthew, A.D. 1357, (l. iv. c. l—50, + p. 705—911.) Nicephorus Gregoras ends with the synod of + Constantinople, in the year 1351, (l. xxii. c. 3, p. 660; the rest, to the + conclusion of the xxivth book, p. 717, is all controversy;) and his + fourteen last books are still MSS. in the king of France's library.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-35" id="linkEnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ The emperor (Cantacuzen. + l. iv. c. 1) represents his own virtues, and Nic. Gregoras (l. xv. c. 11) + the complaints of his friends, who suffered by its effects. I have lent + them the words of our poor cavaliers after the Restoration.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-36" id="linkEnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ The awkward apology of + Cantacuzene, (l. iv. c. 39—42,) who relates, with visible confusion, + his own downfall, may be supplied by the less accurate, but more honest, + narratives of Matthew Villani (l. iv. c. 46, in the Script. Rerum Ital. + tom. xiv. p. 268) and Ducas, (c 10, 11.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-37" id="linkEnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantacuzene, in the year + 1375, was honored with a letter from the pope, (Fleury, Hist. Ecclés. tom. + xx. p. 250.) His death is placed by a respectable authority on the 20th of + November, 1411, (Ducange, Fam. Byzant. p. 260.) But if he were of the age + of his companion Andronicus the Younger, he must have lived 116 years; a + rare instance of longevity, which in so illustrious a person would have + attracted universal notice.] + </p> + <p> + Yet in the cloister, the mind of Cantacuzene was still exercised by + theological war. He sharpened a controversial pen against the Jews and + Mahometans; <a href="#linkEnote-38" name="linkEnoteref-38" + id="linkEnoteref-38">38</a> and in every state he defended with equal zeal + the divine light of Mount Thabor, a memorable question which consummates + the religious follies of the Greeks. The fakirs of India, <a + href="#linkEnote-39" name="linkEnoteref-39" id="linkEnoteref-39">39</a> + and the monks of the Oriental church, were alike persuaded, that in the + total abstraction of the faculties of the mind and body, the purer spirit + may ascend to the enjoyment and vision of the Deity. The opinion and + practice of the monasteries of Mount Athos <a href="#linkEnote-40" + name="linkEnoteref-40" id="linkEnoteref-40">40</a> will be best + represented in the words of an abbot, who flourished in the eleventh + century. "When thou art alone in thy cell," says the ascetic teacher, + "shut thy door, and seat thyself in a corner: raise thy mind above all + things vain and transitory; recline thy beard and chin on thy breast; turn + thy eyes and thy thoughts toward the middle of thy belly, the region of + the navel; and search the place of the heart, the seat of the soul. At + first, all will be dark and comfortless; but if you persevere day and + night, you will feel an ineffable joy; and no sooner has the soul + discovered the place of the heart, than it is involved in a mystic and + ethereal light." This light, the production of a distempered fancy, the + creature of an empty stomach and an empty brain, was adored by the + Quietists as the pure and perfect essence of God himself; and as long as + the folly was confined to Mount Athos, the simple solitaries were not + inquisitive how the divine essence could be a <i>material</i> substance, + or how an <i>immaterial</i> substance could be perceived by the eyes of + the body. But in the reign of the younger Andronicus, these monasteries + were visited by Barlaam, <a href="#linkEnote-41" name="linkEnoteref-41" + id="linkEnoteref-41">41</a> a Calabrian monk, who was equally skilled in + philosophy and theology; who possessed the language of the Greeks and + Latins; and whose versatile genius could maintain their opposite creeds, + according to the interest of the moment. The indiscretion of an ascetic + revealed to the curious traveller the secrets of mental prayer and Barlaam + embraced the opportunity of ridiculing the Quietists, who placed the soul + in the navel; of accusing the monks of Mount Athos of heresy and + blasphemy. His attack compelled the more learned to renounce or dissemble + the simple devotion of their brethren; and Gregory Palamas introduced a + scholastic distinction between the essence and operation of God. His + inaccessible essence dwells in the midst of an uncreated and eternal + light; and this beatific vision of the saints had been manifested to the + disciples on Mount Thabor, in the transfiguration of Christ. Yet this + distinction could not escape the reproach of polytheism; the eternity of + the light of Thabor was fiercely denied; and Barlaam still charged the + Palamites with holding two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible + God. From the rage of the monks of Mount Athos, who threatened his life, + the Calabrian retired to Constantinople, where his smooth and specious + manners introduced him to the favor of the great domestic and the emperor. + The court and the city were involved in this theological dispute, which + flamed amidst the civil war; but the doctrine of Barlaam was disgraced by + his flight and apostasy: the Palamites triumphed; and their adversary, the + patriarch John of Apri, was deposed by the consent of the adverse factions + of the state. In the character of emperor and theologian, Cantacuzene + presided in the synod of the Greek church, which established, as an + article of faith, the uncreated light of Mount Thabor; and, after so many + insults, the reason of mankind was slightly wounded by the addition of a + single absurdity. Many rolls of paper or parchment have been blotted; and + the impenitent sectaries, who refused to subscribe the orthodox creed, + were deprived of the honors of Christian burial; but in the next age the + question was forgotten; nor can I learn that the axe or the fagot were + employed for the extirpation of the Barlaamite heresy. <a + href="#linkEnote-42" name="linkEnoteref-42" id="linkEnoteref-42">42</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-38" id="linkEnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ His four discourses, or + books, were printed at Basil, 1543, (Fabric Bibliot. Græc. tom. vi. p. + 473.) He composed them to satisfy a proselyte who was assaulted with + letters from his friends of Ispahan. Cantacuzene had read the Koran; but I + understand from Maracci that he adopts the vulgar prejudices and fables + against Mahomet and his religion.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-39" id="linkEnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Voyage de + Bernier, tom. i. p. 127.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-40" id="linkEnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ Mosheim, Institut. Hist. + Ecclés. p. 522, 523. Fleury, Hist. Ecclés. tom. xx. p. 22, 24, 107—114, + &c. The former unfolds the causes with the judgment of a philosopher, + the latter transcribes and transcribes and translates with the prejudices + of a Catholic priest.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-41" id="linkEnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ Basnage (in Canisii + Antiq. Lectiones, tom. iv. p. 363—368) has investigated the + character and story of Barlaam. The duplicity of his opinions had inspired + some doubts of the identity of his person. See likewise Fabricius, + (Bibliot. Græc. tom. x. p. 427—432.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-42" id="linkEnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ See Cantacuzene (l. ii. + c. 39, 40, l. iv. c. 3, 23, 24, 25) and Nic. Gregoras, (l. xi. c. 10, l. + xv. 3, 7, &c.,) whose last books, from the xixth to xxivth, are almost + confined to a subject so interesting to the authors. Boivin, (in Vit. Nic. + Gregoræ,) from the unpublished books, and Fabricius, (Bibliot. Græc. tom. + x. p. 462—473,) or rather Montfaucon, from the MSS. of the Coislin + library, have added some facts and documents.] + </p> + <p> + For the conclusion of this chapter, I have reserved the Genoese war, which + shook the throne of Cantacuzene, and betrayed the debility of the Greek + empire. The Genoese, who, after the recovery of Constantinople, were + seated in the suburb of Pera or Galata, received that honorable fief from + the bounty of the emperor. They were indulged in the use of their laws and + magistrates; but they submitted to the duties of vassals and subjects; the + forcible word of <i>liegemen</i><a href="#linkEnote-43" + name="linkEnoteref-43" id="linkEnoteref-43">43</a> was borrowed from the + Latin jurisprudence; and their <i>podesta</i>, or chief, before he entered + on his office, saluted the emperor with loyal acclamations and vows of + fidelity. Genoa sealed a firm alliance with the Greeks; and, in case of a + defensive war, a supply of fifty empty galleys and a succor of fifty + galleys, completely armed and manned, was promised by the republic to the + empire. In the revival of a naval force, it was the aim of Michael + Palæologus to deliver himself from a foreign aid; and his vigorous + government contained the Genoese of Galata within those limits which the + insolence of wealth and freedom provoked them to exceed. A sailor + threatened that they should soon be masters of Constantinople, and slew + the Greek who resented this national affront; and an armed vessel, after + refusing to salute the palace, was guilty of some acts of piracy in the + Black Sea. Their countrymen threatened to support their cause; but the + long and open village of Galata was instantly surrounded by the Imperial + troops; till, in the moment of the assault, the prostrate Genoese implored + the clemency of their sovereign. The defenceless situation which secured + their obedience exposed them to the attack of their Venetian rivals, who, + in the reign of the elder Andronicus, presumed to violate the majesty of + the throne. On the approach of their fleets, the Genoese, with their + families and effects, retired into the city: their empty habitations were + reduced to ashes; and the feeble prince, who had viewed the destruction of + his suburb, expressed his resentment, not by arms, but by ambassadors. + This misfortune, however, was advantageous to the Genoese, who obtained, + and imperceptibly abused, the dangerous license of surrounding Galata with + a strong wall; of introducing into the ditch the waters of the sea; of + erecting lofty turrets; and of mounting a train of military engines on the + rampart. The narrow bounds in which they had been circumscribed were + insufficient for the growing colony; each day they acquired some addition + of landed property; and the adjacent hills were covered with their villas + and castles, which they joined and protected by new fortifications. <a + href="#linkEnote-44" name="linkEnoteref-44" id="linkEnoteref-44">44</a> + The navigation and trade of the Euxine was the patrimony of the Greek + emperors, who commanded the narrow entrance, the gates, as it were, of + that inland sea. In the reign of Michael Palæologus, their prerogative was + acknowledged by the sultan of Egypt, who solicited and obtained the + liberty of sending an annual ship for the purchase of slaves in Circassia + and the Lesser Tartary: a liberty pregnant with mischief to the Christian + cause; since these youths were transformed by education and discipline + into the formidable Mamalukes. <a href="#linkEnote-45" + name="linkEnoteref-45" id="linkEnoteref-45">45</a> From the colony of + Pera, the Genoese engaged with superior advantage in the lucrative trade + of the Black Sea; and their industry supplied the Greeks with fish and + corn; two articles of food almost equally important to a superstitious + people. The spontaneous bounty of nature appears to have bestowed the + harvests of Ukraine, the produce of a rude and savage husbandry; and the + endless exportation of salt fish and caviare is annually renewed by the + enormous sturgeons that are caught at the mouth of the Don or Tanais, in + their last station of the rich mud and shallow water of the Mæotis. <a + href="#linkEnote-46" name="linkEnoteref-46" id="linkEnoteref-46">46</a> + The waters of the Oxus, the Caspian, the Volga, and the Don, opened a rare + and laborious passage for the gems and spices of India; and after three + months' march the caravans of Carizme met the Italian vessels in the + harbors of Crimæa. <a href="#linkEnote-47" name="linkEnoteref-47" + id="linkEnoteref-47">47</a> These various branches of trade were + monopolized by the diligence and power of the Genoese. Their rivals of + Venice and Pisa were forcibly expelled; the natives were awed by the + castles and cities, which arose on the foundations of their humble + factories; and their principal establishment of Caffa <a + href="#linkEnote-48" name="linkEnoteref-48" id="linkEnoteref-48">48</a> + was besieged without effect by the Tartar powers. Destitute of a navy, the + Greeks were oppressed by these haughty merchants, who fed, or famished, + Constantinople, according to their interest. They proceeded to usurp the + customs, the fishery, and even the toll, of the Bosphorus; and while they + derived from these objects a revenue of two hundred thousand pieces of + gold, a remnant of thirty thousand was reluctantly allowed to the emperor. + <a href="#linkEnote-49" name="linkEnoteref-49" id="linkEnoteref-49">49</a> + The colony of Pera or Galata acted, in peace and war, as an independent + state; and, as it will happen in distant settlements, the Genoese podesta + too often forgot that he was the servant of his own masters. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-43" id="linkEnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer (l. v. c. 10) + very properly explains liziouV (<i>ligios</i>) by?lidiouV. The use of + these words in the Greek and Latin of the feudal times may be amply + understood from the Glossaries of Ducange, (Græc. p. 811, 812. Latin. tom. + iv. p. 109—111.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-44" id="linkEnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ The establishment and + progress of the Genoese at Pera, or Galata, is described by Ducange (C. P. + Christiana, l. i. p. 68, 69) from the Byzantine historians, Pachymer, (l. + ii. c. 35, l. v. 10, 30, l. ix. 15 l. xii. 6, 9,) Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. + v. c. 4, l. vi. c. 11, l. ix. c. 5, l. ix. c. 1, l. xv. c. 1, 6,) and + Cantacuzene, (l. i. c. 12, l. ii. c. 29, &c.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-45" id="linkEnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ Both Pachymer (l. iii. + c. 3, 4, 5) and Nic. Greg. (l. iv. c. 7) understand and deplore the + effects of this dangerous indulgence. Bibars, sultan of Egypt, himself a + Tartar, but a devout Mussulman, obtained from the children of Zingis the + permission to build a stately mosque in the capital of Crimea, (De + Guignes, Hist. des Huns, tom. iii. p. 343.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-46" id="linkEnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ Chardin (Voyages en + Perse, tom. i. p. 48) was assured at Caffa, that these fishes were + sometimes twenty-four or twenty-six feet long, weighed eight or nine + hundred pounds, and yielded three or four quintals of caviare. The corn of + the Bosphorus had supplied the Athenians in the time of Demosthenes.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-47" id="linkEnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ De Guignes, Hist. des + Huns, tom. iii. p. 343, 344. Viaggi di Ramusio, tom. i. fol. 400. But this + land or water carriage could only be practicable when Tartary was united + under a wise and powerful monarch.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-48" id="linkEnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ Nic. Gregoras (l. xiii. + c. 12) is judicious and well informed on the trade and colonies of the + Black Sea. Chardin describes the present ruins of Caffa, where, in forty + days, he saw above 400 sail employed in the corn and fish trade, (Voyages + en Perse, tom. i. p. 46—48.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-49" id="linkEnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ See Nic. Gregoras, l. + xvii. c. 1.] + </p> + <p> + These usurpations were encouraged by the weakness of the elder Andronicus, + and by the civil wars that afflicted his age and the minority of his + grandson. The talents of Cantacuzene were employed to the ruin, rather + than the restoration, of the empire; and after his domestic victory, he + was condemned to an ignominious trial, whether the Greeks or the Genoese + should reign in Constantinople. The merchants of Pera were offended by his + refusal of some contiguous land, some commanding heights, which they + proposed to cover with new fortifications; and in the absence of the + emperor, who was detained at Demotica by sickness, they ventured to brave + the debility of a female reign. A Byzantine vessel, which had presumed to + fish at the mouth of the harbor, was sunk by these audacious strangers; + the fishermen were murdered. Instead of suing for pardon, the Genoese + demanded satisfaction; required, in a haughty strain, that the Greeks + should renounce the exercise of navigation; and encountered with regular + arms the first sallies of the popular indignation. They instantly occupied + the debatable land; and by the labor of a whole people, of either sex and + of every age, the wall was raised, and the ditch was sunk, with incredible + speed. At the same time, they attacked and burnt two Byzantine galleys; + while the three others, the remainder of the Imperial navy, escaped from + their hands: the habitations without the gates, or along the shore, were + pillaged and destroyed; and the care of the regent, of the empress Irene, + was confined to the preservation of the city. The return of Cantacuzene + dispelled the public consternation: the emperor inclined to peaceful + counsels; but he yielded to the obstinacy of his enemies, who rejected all + reasonable terms, and to the ardor of his subjects, who threatened, in the + style of Scripture, to break them in pieces like a potter's vessel. Yet + they reluctantly paid the taxes, that he imposed for the construction of + ships, and the expenses of the war; and as the two nations were masters, + the one of the land, the other of the sea, Constantinople and Pera were + pressed by the evils of a mutual siege. The merchants of the colony, who + had believed that a few days would terminate the war, already murmured at + their losses: the succors from their mother-country were delayed by the + factions of Genoa; and the most cautious embraced the opportunity of a + Rhodian vessel to remove their families and effects from the scene of + hostility. In the spring, the Byzantine fleet, seven galleys and a train + of smaller vessels, issued from the mouth of the harbor, and steered in a + single line along the shore of Pera; unskilfully presenting their sides to + the beaks of the adverse squadron. The crews were composed of peasants and + mechanics; nor was their ignorance compensated by the native courage of + Barbarians: the wind was strong, the waves were rough; and no sooner did + the Greeks perceive a distant and inactive enemy, than they leaped + headlong into the sea, from a doubtful, to an inevitable peril. The troops + that marched to the attack of the lines of Pera were struck at the same + moment with a similar panic; and the Genoese were astonished, and almost + ashamed, at their double victory. Their triumphant vessels, crowned with + flowers, and dragging after them the captive galleys, repeatedly passed + and repassed before the palace: the only virtue of the emperor was + patience; and the hope of revenge his sole consolation. Yet the distress + of both parties interposed a temporary agreement; and the shame of the + empire was disguised by a thin veil of dignity and power. Summoning the + chiefs of the colony, Cantacuzene affected to despise the trivial object + of the debate; and, after a mild reproof, most liberally granted the + lands, which had been previously resigned to the seeming custody of his + officers. <a href="#linkEnote-50" name="linkEnoteref-50" + id="linkEnoteref-50">50</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-50" id="linkEnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ The events of this war + are related by Cantacuzene (l. iv. c. 11 with obscurity and confusion, and + by Nic. Gregoras l. xvii. c. 1—7) in a clear and honest narrative. + The priest was less responsible than the prince for the defeat of the + fleet.] + </p> + <p> + But the emperor was soon solicited to violate the treaty, and to join his + arms with the Venetians, the perpetual enemies of Genoa and her colonies. + While he compared the reasons of peace and war, his moderation was + provoked by a wanton insult of the inhabitants of Pera, who discharged + from their rampart a large stone that fell in the midst of Constantinople. + On his just complaint, they coldly blamed the imprudence of their + engineer; but the next day the insult was repeated; and they exulted in a + second proof that the royal city was not beyond the reach of their + artillery. Cantacuzene instantly signed his treaty with the Venetians; but + the weight of the Roman empire was scarcely felt in the balance of these + opulent and powerful republics. <a href="#linkEnote-51" + name="linkEnoteref-51" id="linkEnoteref-51">51</a> From the Straits of + Gibraltar to the mouth of the Tanais, their fleets encountered each other + with various success; and a memorable battle was fought in the narrow sea, + under the walls of Constantinople. It would not be an easy task to + reconcile the accounts of the Greeks, the Venetians, and the Genoese; <a + href="#linkEnote-52" name="linkEnoteref-52" id="linkEnoteref-52">52</a> + and while I depend on the narrative of an impartial historian, <a + href="#linkEnote-53" name="linkEnoteref-53" id="linkEnoteref-53">53</a> I + shall borrow from each nation the facts that redound to their own + disgrace, and the honor of their foes. The Venetians, with their allies + the Catalans, had the advantage of number; and their fleet, with the poor + addition of eight Byzantine galleys, amounted to seventy-five sail: the + Genoese did not exceed sixty-four; but in those times their ships of war + were distinguished by the superiority of their size and strength. The + names and families of their naval commanders, Pisani and Doria, are + illustrious in the annals of their country; but the personal merit of the + former was eclipsed by the fame and abilities of his rival. They engaged + in tempestuous weather; and the tumultuary conflict was continued from the + dawn to the extinction of light. The enemies of the Genoese applaud their + prowess; the friends of the Venetians are dissatisfied with their + behavior; but all parties agree in praising the skill and boldness of the + Catalans, <a href="#linkEnote-531" name="linkEnoteref-531" + id="linkEnoteref-531">531</a> who, with many wounds, sustained the brunt + of the action. On the separation of the fleets, the event might appear + doubtful; but the thirteen Genoese galleys, that had been sunk or taken, + were compensated by a double loss of the allies; of fourteen Venetians, + ten Catalans, and two Greeks; <a href="#linkEnote-532" + name="linkEnoteref-532" id="linkEnoteref-532">532</a> and even the grief + of the conquerors expressed the assurance and habit of more decisive + victories. Pisani confessed his defeat, by retiring into a fortified + harbor, from whence, under the pretext of the orders of the senate, he + steered with a broken and flying squadron for the Isle of Candia, and + abandoned to his rivals the sovereignty of the sea. In a public epistle, + <a href="#linkEnote-54" name="linkEnoteref-54" id="linkEnoteref-54">54</a> + addressed to the doge and senate, Petrarch employs his eloquence to + reconcile the maritime powers, the two luminaries of Italy. The orator + celebrates the valor and victory of the Genoese, the first of men in the + exercise of naval war: he drops a tear on the misfortunes of their + Venetian brethren; but he exhorts them to pursue with fire and sword the + base and perfidious Greeks; to purge the metropolis of the East from the + heresy with which it was infected. Deserted by their friends, the Greeks + were incapable of resistance; and three months after the battle, the + emperor Cantacuzene solicited and subscribed a treaty, which forever + banished the Venetians and Catalans, and granted to the Genoese a monopoly + of trade, and almost a right of dominion. The Roman empire (I smile in + transcribing the name) might soon have sunk into a province of Genoa, if + the ambition of the republic had not been checked by the ruin of her + freedom and naval power. A long contest of one hundred and thirty years + was determined by the triumph of Venice; and the factions of the Genoese + compelled them to seek for domestic peace under the protection of a + foreign lord, the duke of Milan, or the French king. Yet the spirit of + commerce survived that of conquest; and the colony of Pera still awed the + capital and navigated the Euxine, till it was involved by the Turks in the + final servitude of Constantinople itself. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-51" id="linkEnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ The second war is darkly + told by Cantacuzene, (l. iv. c. 18, p. 24, 25, 28—32,) who wishes to + disguise what he dares not deny. I regret this part of Nic. Gregoras, + which is still in MS. at Paris. * Note: This part of Nicephorus Gregoras + has not been printed in the new edition of the Byzantine Historians. The + editor expresses a hope that it may be undertaken by Hase. I should join + in the regret of Gibbon, if these books contain any historical + information: if they are but a continuation of the controversies which + fill the last books in our present copies, they may as well sleep their + eternal sleep in MS. as in print.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-52" id="linkEnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ Muratori (Annali d' + Italia, tom. xii. p. 144) refers to the most ancient Chronicles of Venice + (Caresinus, the continuator of Andrew Dandulus, tom. xii. p. 421, 422) and + Genoa, (George Stella Annales Genuenses, tom. xvii. p. 1091, 1092;) both + which I have diligently consulted in his great Collection of the + Historians of Italy.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-53" id="linkEnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Chronicle of + Matteo Villani of Florence, l. ii. c. 59, p. 145—147, c. 74, 75, p. + 156, 157, in Muratori's Collection, tom. xiv.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-531" id="linkEnote-531"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 531 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-531">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantacuzene praises + their bravery, but imputes their losses to their ignorance of the seas: + they suffered more by the breakers than by the enemy, vol. iii. p. 224.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-532" id="linkEnote-532"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 532 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-532">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantacuzene says that + the Genoese lost twenty-eight ships with their crews, autandroi; the + Venetians and Catalans sixteen, the Imperials, none Cantacuzene accuses + Pisani of cowardice, in not following up the victory, and destroying the + Genoese. But Pisani's conduct, and indeed Cantacuzene's account of the + battle, betray the superiority of the Genoese.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkEnote-54" id="linkEnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkEnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ The Abbé de Sade + (Mémoires sur la Vie de Petrarque, tom. iii. p. 257—263) translates + this letter, which he copied from a MS. in the king of France's library. + Though a servant of the duke of Milan, Petrarch pours forth his + astonishment and grief at the defeat and despair of the Genoese in the + following year, (p. 323—332.)] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> ============= <a name="linkF2HCH0001" id="linkF2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + Chapter LXIV: Moguls, Ottoman Turks.—Part I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Conquests Of Zingis Khan And The Moguls From China To + Poland.—Escape Of Constantinople And The Greeks.—Origin Of + The Ottoman Turks In Bithynia.—Reigns And Victories Of + Othman, Orchan, Amurath The First, And Bajazet The First.— + Foundation And Progress Of The Turkish Monarchy In Asia And + Europe.—Danger Of Constantinople And The Greek Empire. +</pre> + <p> + From the petty quarrels of a city and her suburbs, from the cowardice and + discord of the falling Greeks, I shall now ascend to the victorious Turks; + whose domestic slavery was ennobled by martial discipline, religious + enthusiasm, and the energy of the national character. The rise and + progress of the Ottomans, the present sovereigns of Constantinople, are + connected with the most important scenes of modern history; but they are + founded on a previous knowledge of the great eruption of the Moguls <a + href="#linkFnote-100" name="linkFnoteref-100" id="linkFnoteref-100">100</a> + and Tartars; whose rapid conquests may be compared with the primitive + convulsions of nature, which have agitated and altered the surface of the + globe. I have long since asserted my claim to introduce the nations, the + immediate or remote authors of the fall of the Roman empire; nor can I + refuse myself to those events, which, from their uncommon magnitude, will + interest a philosophic mind in the history of blood. <a href="#linkFnote-1" + name="linkFnoteref-1" id="linkFnoteref-1">1</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-100" id="linkFnote-100"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 100 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-100">return</a>)<br /> [ Mongol seems to + approach the nearest to the proper name of this race. The Chinese call + them Mong-kou; the Mondchoux, their neighbors, Monggo or Monggou. They + called themselves also Beda. This fact seems to have been proved by M. + Schmidt against the French Orientalists. See De Brosset. Note on Le Beau, + tom. xxii p. 402.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-1" id="linkFnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ The reader is invited to + review chapters xxii. to xxvi., and xxiii. to xxxviii., the manners of + pastoral nations, the conquests of Attila and the Huns, which were + composed at a time when I entertained the wish, rather than the hope, of + concluding my history.] + </p> + <p> + From the spacious highlands between China, Siberia, and the Caspian Sea, + the tide of emigration and war has repeatedly been poured. These ancient + seats of the Huns and Turks were occupied in the twelfth century by many + pastoral tribes, of the same descent and similar manners, which were + united and led to conquest by the formidable Zingis. <a + href="#linkFnote-101" name="linkFnoteref-101" id="linkFnoteref-101">101</a> + In his ascent to greatness, that Barbarian (whose private appellation was + Temugin) had trampled on the necks of his equals. His birth was noble; but + it was the pride of victory, that the prince or people deduced his seventh + ancestor from the immaculate conception of a virgin. His father had + reigned over thirteen hordes, which composed about thirty or forty + thousand families: above two thirds refused to pay tithes or obedience to + his infant son; and at the age of thirteen, Temugin fought a battle + against his rebellious subjects. The future conqueror of Asia was reduced + to fly and to obey; but he rose superior to his fortune, and in his + fortieth year he had established his fame and dominion over the + circumjacent tribes. In a state of society, in which policy is rude and + valor is universal, the ascendant of one man must be founded on his power + and resolution to punish his enemies and recompense his friends. His first + military league was ratified by the simple rites of sacrificing a horse + and tasting of a running stream: Temugin pledged himself to divide with + his followers the sweets and the bitters of life; and when he had shared + among them his horses and apparel, he was rich in their gratitude and his + own hopes. After his first victory, he placed seventy caldrons on the + fire, and seventy of the most guilty rebels were cast headlong into the + boiling water. The sphere of his attraction was continually enlarged by + the ruin of the proud and the submission of the prudent; and the boldest + chieftains might tremble, when they beheld, enchased in silver, the skull + of the khan of Keraites; <a href="#linkFnote-2" name="linkFnoteref-2" + id="linkFnoteref-2">2</a> who, under the name of Prester John, had + corresponded with the Roman pontiff and the princes of Europe. The + ambition of Temugin condescended to employ the arts of superstition; and + it was from a naked prophet, who could ascend to heaven on a white horse, + that he accepted the title of Zingis, <a href="#linkFnote-3" + name="linkFnoteref-3" id="linkFnoteref-3">3</a> the <i>most great</i>; and + a divine right to the conquest and dominion of the earth. In a general <i>couroultai</i>, + or diet, he was seated on a felt, which was long afterwards revered as a + relic, and solemnly proclaimed great khan, or emperor of the Moguls <a + href="#linkFnote-4" name="linkFnoteref-4" id="linkFnoteref-4">4</a> and + Tartars. <a href="#linkFnote-5" name="linkFnoteref-5" id="linkFnoteref-5">5</a> + Of these kindred, though rival, names, the former had given birth to the + imperial race; and the latter has been extended by accident or error over + the spacious wilderness of the north. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-101" id="linkFnote-101"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 101 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-101">return</a>)<br /> [ On the traditions of + the early life of Zingis, see D'Ohson, Hist des Mongols; Histoire des + Mongols, Paris, 1824. Schmidt, Geschichte des Ost-Mongolen, p. 66, &c., + and Notes.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-2" id="linkFnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ The khans of the Keraites + were most probably incapable of reading the pompous epistles composed in + their name by the Nestorian missionaries, who endowed them with the + fabulous wonders of an Indian kingdom. Perhaps these Tartars (the + Presbyter or Priest John) had submitted to the rites of baptism and + ordination, (Asseman, Bibliot Orient tom. iii. p. ii. p. 487—503.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-3" id="linkFnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ Since the history and + tragedy of Voltaire, Gengis, at least in French, seems to be the more + fashionable spelling; but Abulghazi Khan must have known the true name of + his ancestor. His etymology appears just: <i>Zin</i>, in the Mogul tongue, + signifies <i>great</i>, and <i>gis</i> is the superlative termination, + (Hist. Généalogique des Tatars, part iii. p. 194, 195.) From the same idea + of magnitude, the appellation of <i>Zingis</i> is bestowed on the ocean.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-4" id="linkFnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ The name of Moguls has + prevailed among the Orientals, and still adheres to the titular sovereign, + the Great Mogul of Hindastan. * Note: M. Remusat (sur les Langues + Tartares, p. 233) justly observes, that Timour was a Turk, not a Mogul, + and, p. 242, that probably there was not Mogul in the army of Baber, who + established the Indian throne of the "Great Mogul."—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-5" id="linkFnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ The Tartars (more properly + Tatars) were descended from Tatar Khan, the brother of Mogul Khan, (see + Abulghazi, part i. and ii.,) and once formed a horde of 70,000 families on + the borders of Kitay, (p. 103—112.) In the great invasion of Europe + (A.D. 1238) they seem to have led the vanguard; and the similitude of the + name of <i>Tartarei</i>, recommended that of Tartars to the Latins, (Matt. + Paris, p. 398, &c.) * Note: This relationship, according to M. + Klaproth, is fabulous, and invented by the Mahometan writers, who, from + religious zeal, endeavored to connect the traditions of the nomads of + Central Asia with those of the Old Testament, as preserved in the Koran. + There is no trace of it in the Chinese writers. Tabl. de l'Asie, p. 156.—M.] + </p> + <p> + The code of laws which Zingis dictated to his subjects was adapted to the + preservation of a domestic peace, and the exercise of foreign hostility. + The punishment of death was inflicted on the crimes of adultery, murder, + perjury, and the capital thefts of a horse or ox; and the fiercest of men + were mild and just in their intercourse with each other. The future + election of the great khan was vested in the princes of his family and the + heads of the tribes; and the regulations of the chase were essential to + the pleasures and plenty of a Tartar camp. The victorious nation was held + sacred from all servile labors, which were abandoned to slaves and + strangers; and every labor was servile except the profession of arms. The + service and discipline of the troops, who were armed with bows, cimeters, + and iron maces, and divided by hundreds, thousands, and ten thousands, + were the institutions of a veteran commander. Each officer and soldier was + made responsible, under pain of death, for the safety and honor of his + companions; and the spirit of conquest breathed in the law, that peace + should never be granted unless to a vanquished and suppliant enemy. But it + is the religion of Zingis that best deserves our wonder and applause. <a + href="#linkFnote-501" name="linkFnoteref-501" id="linkFnoteref-501">501</a> + The Catholic inquisitors of Europe, who defended nonsense by cruelty, + might have been confounded by the example of a Barbarian, who anticipated + the lessons of philosophy, <a href="#linkFnote-6" name="linkFnoteref-6" + id="linkFnoteref-6">6</a> and established by his laws a system of pure + theism and perfect toleration. His first and only article of faith was the + existence of one God, the Author of all good; who fills by his presence + the heavens and earth, which he has created by his power. The Tartars and + Moguls were addicted to the idols of their peculiar tribes; and many of + them had been converted by the foreign missionaries to the religions of + Moses, of Mahomet, and of Christ. These various systems in freedom and + concord were taught and practised within the precincts of the same camp; + and the Bonze, the Imam, the Rabbi, the Nestorian, and the Latin priest, + enjoyed the same honorable exemption from service and tribute: in the + mosque of Bochara, the insolent victor might trample the Koran under his + horse's feet, but the calm legislator respected the prophets and pontiffs + of the most hostile sects. The reason of Zingis was not informed by books: + the khan could neither read nor write; and, except the tribe of the + Igours, the greatest part of the Moguls and Tartars were as illiterate as + their sovereign. <a href="#linkFnote-601" name="linkFnoteref-601" + id="linkFnoteref-601">601</a> The memory of their exploits was preserved + by tradition: sixty-eight years after the death of Zingis, these + traditions were collected and transcribed; <a href="#linkFnote-7" + name="linkFnoteref-7" id="linkFnoteref-7">7</a> the brevity of their + domestic annals may be supplied by the Chinese, <a href="#linkFnote-8" + name="linkFnoteref-8" id="linkFnoteref-8">8</a> Persians, <a + href="#linkFnote-9" name="linkFnoteref-9" id="linkFnoteref-9">9</a> + Armenians, <a href="#linkFnote-10" name="linkFnoteref-10" + id="linkFnoteref-10">10</a> Syrians, <a href="#linkFnote-11" + name="linkFnoteref-11" id="linkFnoteref-11">11</a> Arabians, <a + href="#linkFnote-12" name="linkFnoteref-12" id="linkFnoteref-12">12</a> + Greeks, <a href="#linkFnote-13" name="linkFnoteref-13" id="linkFnoteref-13">13</a> + Russians, <a href="#linkFnote-14" name="linkFnoteref-14" + id="linkFnoteref-14">14</a> Poles, <a href="#linkFnote-15" + name="linkFnoteref-15" id="linkFnoteref-15">15</a> Hungarians, <a + href="#linkFnote-16" name="linkFnoteref-16" id="linkFnoteref-16">16</a> + and Latins; <a href="#linkFnote-17" name="linkFnoteref-17" + id="linkFnoteref-17">17</a> and each nation will deserve credit in the + relation of their own disasters and defeats. <a href="#linkFnote-18" + name="linkFnoteref-18" id="linkFnoteref-18">18</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-501" id="linkFnote-501"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 501 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-501">return</a>)<br /> [ Before his armies + entered Thibet, he sent an embassy to Bogdosottnam-Dsimmo, a Lama high + priest, with a letter to this effect: "I have chosen thee as high priest + for myself and my empire. Repair then to me, and promote the present and + future happiness of man: I will be thy supporter and protector: let us + establish a system of religion, and unite it with the monarchy," &c. + The high priest accepted the invitation; and the Mongol history literally + terms this step the <i>period of the first respect for religion</i>; + because the monarch, by his public profession, made it the religion of the + state. Klaproth. "Travels in Caucasus," ch. 7, Eng. Trans. p. 92. Neither + Dshingis nor his son and successor Oegodah had, on account of their + continual wars, much leisure for the propagation of the religion of the + Lama. By religion they understand a distinct, independent, sacred moral + code, which has but one origin, one source, and one object. This notion + they universally propagate, and even believe that the brutes, and all + created beings, have a religion adapted to their sphere of action. The + different forms of the various religions they ascribe to the difference of + individuals, nations, and legislators. Never do you hear of their + inveighing against any creed, even against the obviously absurd Schaman + paganism, or of their persecuting others on that account. They themselves, + on the other hand, endure every hardship, and even persecutions, with + perfect resignation, and indulgently excuse the follies of others, nay, + consider them as a motive for increased ardor in prayer, ch. ix. p. 109.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-6" id="linkFnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ A singular conformity may + be found between the religious laws of Zingis Khan and of Mr. Locke, + (Constitutions of Carolina, in his works, vol. iv. p. 535, 4to. edition, + 1777.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-601" id="linkFnote-601"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 601 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-601">return</a>)<br /> [ See the notice on + Tha-tha-toung-o, the Ouogour minister of Tchingis, in Abel Remusat's 2d + series of Recherch. Asiat. vol. ii. p. 61. He taught the son of Tchingis + to write: "He was the instructor of the Moguls in writing, of which they + were before ignorant;" and hence the application of the Ouigour characters + to the Mogul language cannot be placed earlier than the year 1204 or 1205, + nor so late as the time of Pà-sse-pa, who lived under Khubilai. A new + alphabet, approaching to that of Thibet, was introduced under Khubilai.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-7" id="linkFnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ In the year 1294, by the + command of Cazan, khan of Persia, the fourth in descent from Zingis. From + these traditions, his vizier Fadlallah composed a Mogul history in the + Persian language, which has been used by Petit de la Croix, (Hist. de + Genghizcan, p. 537—539.) The Histoire Généalogique des Tatars (à + Leyde, 1726, in 12mo., 2 tomes) was translated by the Swedish prisoners in + Siberia from the Mogul MS. of Abulgasi Bahadur Khan, a descendant of + Zingis, who reigned over the Usbeks of Charasm, or Carizme, (A.D. 1644—1663.) + He is of most value and credit for the names, pedigrees, and manners of + his nation. Of his nine parts, the ist descends from Adam to Mogul Khan; + the iid, from Mogul to Zingis; the iiid is the life of Zingis; the ivth, + vth, vith, and viith, the general history of his four sons and their + posterity; the viiith and ixth, the particular history of the descendants + of Sheibani Khan, who reigned in Maurenahar and Charasm.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-8" id="linkFnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ Histoire de Gentchiscan, + et de toute la Dinastie des Mongous ses Successeurs, Conquerans de la + Chine; tirée de l'Histoire de la Chine par le R. P. Gaubil, de la Société + de Jesus, Missionaire à Peking; à Paris, 1739, in 4to. This translation is + stamped with the Chinese character of domestic accuracy and foreign + ignorance.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-9" id="linkFnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Histoire du Grand + Genghizcan, premier Empereur des Moguls et Tartares, par M. Petit de la + Croix, à Paris, 1710, in 12mo.; a work of ten years' labor, chiefly drawn + from the Persian writers, among whom Nisavi, the secretary of Sultan + Gelaleddin, has the merit and prejudices of a contemporary. A slight air + of romance is the fault of the originals, or the compiler. See likewise + the articles of <i>Genghizcan</i>, <i>Mohammed</i>, <i>Gelaleddin</i>, + &c., in the Bibliothèque Orientale of D'Herbelot. * Note: The preface + to the Hist. des Mongols, (Paris, 1824) gives a catalogue of the Arabic + and Persian authorities.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-10" id="linkFnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ Haithonus, or Aithonus, + an Armenian prince, and afterwards a monk of Premontré, (Fabric, Bibliot. + Lat. Medii Ævi, tom. i. p. 34,) dictated in the French language, his book + <i>de Tartaris</i>, his old fellow-soldiers. It was immediately translated + into Latin, and is inserted in the Novus Orbis of Simon Grynæus, (Basil, + 1555, in folio.) * Note: A précis at the end of the new edition of Le + Beau, Hist. des Empereurs, vol. xvii., by M. Brosset, gives large extracts + from the accounts of the Armenian historians relating to the Mogul + conquests.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-11" id="linkFnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ Zingis Khan, and his + first successors, occupy the conclusion of the ixth Dynasty of + Abulpharagius, (vers. Pocock, Oxon. 1663, in 4to.;) and his xth Dynasty is + that of the Moguls of Persia. Assemannus (Bibliot. Orient. tom. ii.) has + extracted some facts from his Syriac writings, and the lives of the + Jacobite maphrians, or primates of the East.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-12" id="linkFnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ Among the Arabians, in + language and religion, we may distinguish Abulfeda, sultan of Hamah in + Syria, who fought in person, under the Mamaluke standard, against the + Moguls.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-13" id="linkFnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicephorus Gregoras (l. + ii. c. 5, 6) has felt the necessity of connecting the Scythian and + Byzantine histories. He describes with truth and elegance the settlement + and manners of the Moguls of Persia, but he is ignorant of their origin, + and corrupts the names of Zingis and his sons.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-14" id="linkFnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ M. Levesque (Histoire de + Russie, tom. ii.) has described the conquest of Russia by the Tartars, + from the patriarch Nicon, and the old chronicles.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-15" id="linkFnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ For Poland, I am content + with the Sarmatia Asiatica et Europæa of Matthew à Michou, or De Michoviâ, + a canon and physician of Cracow, (A.D. 1506,) inserted in the Novus Orbis + of Grynæus. Fabric Bibliot. Latin. Mediæ et Infimæ Ætatis, tom. v. p. 56.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-16" id="linkFnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ I should quote + Thuroczius, the oldest general historian (pars ii. c. 74, p. 150) in the + 1st volume of the Scriptores Rerum Hungaricarum, did not the same volume + contain the original narrative of a contemporary, an eye-witness, and a + sufferer, (M. Rogerii, Hungari, Varadiensis Capituli Canonici, Carmen + miserabile, seu Historia super Destructione Regni Hungariæ Temporibus Belæ + IV. Regis per Tartaros facta, p. 292—321;) the best picture that I + have ever seen of all the circumstances of a Barbaric invasion.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-17" id="linkFnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ Matthew Paris has + represented, from authentic documents, the danger and distress of Europe, + (consult the word <i>Tartari</i> in his copious Index.) From motives of + zeal and curiosity, the court of the great khan in the xiiith century was + visited by two friars, John de Plano Carpini, and William Rubruquis, and + by Marco Polo, a Venetian gentleman. The Latin relations of the two former + are inserted in the 1st volume of Hackluyt; the Italian original or + version of the third (Fabric. Bibliot. Latin. Medii Ævi, tom. ii. p. 198, + tom. v. p. 25) may be found in the second tome of Ramusio.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-18" id="linkFnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ In his great History of + the Huns, M. de Guignes has most amply treated of Zingis Khan and his + successors. See tom. iii. l. xv.—xix., and in the collateral + articles of the Seljukians of Roum, tom. ii. l. xi., the Carizmians, l. + xiv., and the Mamalukes, tom. iv. l. xxi.; consult likewise the tables of + the 1st volume. He is ever learned and accurate; yet I am only indebted to + him for a general view, and some passages of Abulfeda, which are still + latent in the Arabic text. * Note: To this catalogue of the historians of + the Moguls may be added D'Ohson, Histoire des Mongols; Histoire des + Mongols, (from Arabic and Persian authorities,) Paris, 1824. Schmidt, + Geschichte der Ost Mongolen, St. Petersburgh, 1829. This curious work, by + Ssanang Ssetsen Chungtaidschi, published in the original Mongol, was + written after the conversion of the nation to Buddhism: it is enriched + with very valuable Fnotes by the editor and translator; but, + unfortunately, is very barren of information about the European and even + the western Asiatic conquests of the Mongols.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkF2HCH0002" id="linkF2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXIV: Moguls, Ottoman Turks.—Part II. + </h2> + <p> + The arms of Zingis and his lieutenants successively reduced the hordes of + the desert, who pitched their tents between the wall of China and the + Volga; and the Mogul emperor became the monarch of the pastoral world, the + lord of many millions of shepherds and soldiers, who felt their united + strength, and were impatient to rush on the mild and wealthy climates of + the south. His ancestors had been the tributaries of the Chinese emperors; + and Temugin himself had been disgraced by a title of honor and servitude. + The court of Pekin was astonished by an embassy from its former vassal, + who, in the tone of the king of nations, exacted the tribute and obedience + which he had paid, and who affected to treat the <i>son of heaven</i> as + the most contemptible of mankind. A haughty answer disguised their secret + apprehensions; and their fears were soon justified by the march of + innumerable squadrons, who pierced on all sides the feeble rampart of the + great wall. Ninety cities were stormed, or starved, by the Moguls; ten + only escaped; and Zingis, from a knowledge of the filial piety of the + Chinese, covered his vanguard with their captive parents; an unworthy, and + by degrees a fruitless, abuse of the virtue of his enemies. His invasion + was supported by the revolt of a hundred thousand Khitans, who guarded the + frontier: yet he listened to a treaty; and a princess of China, three + thousand horses, five hundred youths, and as many virgins, and a tribute + of gold and silk, were the price of his retreat. In his second expedition, + he compelled the Chinese emperor to retire beyond the yellow river to a + more southern residence. The siege of Pekin <a href="#linkFnote-19" + name="linkFnoteref-19" id="linkFnoteref-19">19</a> was long and laborious: + the inhabitants were reduced by famine to decimate and devour their + fellow-citizens; when their ammunition was spent, they discharged ingots + of gold and silver from their engines; but the Moguls introduced a mine to + the centre of the capital; and the conflagration of the palace burnt above + thirty days. China was desolated by Tartar war and domestic faction; and + the five northern provinces were added to the empire of Zingis. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-19" id="linkFnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ More properly <i>Yen-king</i>, + an ancient city, whose ruins still appear some furlongs to the south-east + of the modern <i>Pekin</i>, which was built by Cublai Khan, (Gaubel, p. + 146.) Pe-king and Nan-king are vague titles, the courts of the north and + of the south. The identity and change of names perplex the most skilful + readers of the Chinese geography, (p. 177.) * Note: And likewise in + Chinese history—see Abel Remusat, Mel. Asiat. 2d tom. ii. p. 5.—M.] + </p> + <p> + In the West, he touched the dominions of Mohammed, sultan of Carizme, who + reigned from the Persian Gulf to the borders of India and Turkestan; and + who, in the proud imitation of Alexander the Great, forgot the servitude + and ingratitude of his fathers to the house of Seljuk. It was the wish of + Zingis to establish a friendly and commercial intercourse with the most + powerful of the Moslem princes: nor could he be tempted by the secret + solicitations of the caliph of Bagdad, who sacrificed to his personal + wrongs the safety of the church and state. A rash and inhuman deed + provoked and justified the Tartar arms in the invasion of the southern + Asia. <a href="#linkFnote-191" name="linkFnoteref-191" + id="linkFnoteref-191">191</a> A caravan of three ambassadors and one + hundred and fifty merchants were arrested and murdered at Otrar, by the + command of Mohammed; nor was it till after a demand and denial of justice, + till he had prayed and fasted three nights on a mountain, that the Mogul + emperor appealed to the judgment of God and his sword. Our European + battles, says a philosophic writer, <a href="#linkFnote-20" + name="linkFnoteref-20" id="linkFnoteref-20">20</a> are petty skirmishes, + if compared to the numbers that have fought and fallen in the fields of + Asia. Seven hundred thousand Moguls and Tartars are said to have marched + under the standard of Zingis and his four sons. In the vast plains that + extend to the north of the Sihon or Jaxartes, they were encountered by + four hundred thousand soldiers of the sultan; and in the first battle, + which was suspended by the night, one hundred and sixty thousand + Carizmians were slain. Mohammed was astonished by the multitude and valor + of his enemies: he withdrew from the scene of danger, and distributed his + troops in the frontier towns; trusting that the Barbarians, invincible in + the field, would be repulsed by the length and difficulty of so many + regular sieges. But the prudence of Zingis had formed a body of Chinese + engineers, skilled in the mechanic arts; informed perhaps of the secret of + gunpowder, and capable, under his discipline, of attacking a foreign + country with more vigor and success than they had defended their own. The + Persian historians will relate the sieges and reduction of Otrar, Cogende, + Bochara, Samarcand, Carizme, Herat, Merou, Nisabour, Balch, and Candahar; + and the conquest of the rich and populous countries of Transoxiana, + Carizme, and Chorazan. <a href="#linkFnote-204" name="linkFnoteref-204" + id="linkFnoteref-204">204</a> The destructive hostilities of Attila and + the Huns have long since been elucidated by the example of Zingis and the + Moguls; and in this more proper place I shall be content to observe, that, + from the Caspian to the Indus, they ruined a tract of many hundred miles, + which was adorned with the habitations and labors of mankind, and that + five centuries have not been sufficient to repair the ravages of four + years. The Mogul emperor encouraged or indulged the fury of his troops: + the hope of future possession was lost in the ardor of rapine and + slaughter; and the cause of the war exasperated their native fierceness by + the pretence of justice and revenge. The downfall and death of the sultan + Mohammed, who expired, unpitied and alone, in a desert island of the + Caspian Sea, is a poor atonement for the calamities of which he was the + author. Could the Carizmian empire have been saved by a single hero, it + would have been saved by his son Gelaleddin, whose active valor repeatedly + checked the Moguls in the career of victory. Retreating, as he fought, to + the banks of the Indus, he was oppressed by their innumerable host, till, + in the last moment of despair, Gelaleddin spurred his horse into the + waves, swam one of the broadest and most rapid rivers of Asia, and + extorted the admiration and applause of Zingis himself. It was in this + camp that the Mogul conqueror yielded with reluctance to the murmurs of + his weary and wealthy troops, who sighed for the enjoyment of their native + land. Eucumbered with the spoils of Asia, he slowly measured back his + footsteps, betrayed some pity for the misery of the vanquished, and + declared his intention of rebuilding the cities which had been swept away + by the tempest of his arms. After he had repassed the Oxus and Jaxartes, + he was joined by two generals, whom he had detached with thirty thousand + horse, to subdue the western provinces of Persia. They had trampled on the + nations which opposed their passage, penetrated through the gates of + Derbent, traversed the Volga and the desert, and accomplished the circuit + of the Caspian Sea, by an expedition which had never been attempted, and + has never been repeated. The return of Zingis was signalized by the + overthrow of the rebellious or independent kingdoms of Tartary; and he + died in the fulness of years and glory, with his last breath exhorting and + instructing his sons to achieve the conquest of the Chinese empire. <a + href="#linkFnote-205" name="linkFnoteref-205" id="linkFnoteref-205">205</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-191" id="linkFnote-191"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 191 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-191">return</a>)<br /> [ See the particular + account of this transaction, from the Kholauesut el Akbaur, in Price, vol. + ii. p. 402.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-20" id="linkFnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ M. de Voltaire, Essai + sur l'Histoire Générale, tom. iii. c. 60, p. 8. His account of Zingis and + the Moguls contains, as usual, much general sense and truth, with some + particular errors.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-204" id="linkFnote-204"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 204 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-204">return</a>)<br /> [ Every where they + massacred all classes, except the artisans, whom they made slaves. Hist. + des Mongols.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-205" id="linkFnote-205"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 205 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-205">return</a>)<br /> [ Their first duty, + which he bequeathed to them, was to massacre the king of Tangcoute and all + the inhabitants of Ninhia, the surrender of the city being already agreed + upon, Hist. des Mongols. vol. i. p. 286.—M.] + </p> + <p> + The harem of Zingis was composed of five hundred wives and concubines; and + of his numerous progeny, four sons, illustrious by their birth and merit, + exercised under their father the principal offices of peace and war. + Toushi was his great huntsman, Zagatai <a href="#linkFnote-21" + name="linkFnoteref-21" id="linkFnoteref-21">21</a> his judge, Octai his + minister, and Tuli his general; and their names and actions are often + conspicuous in the history of his conquests. Firmly united for their own + and the public interest, the three brothers and their families were + content with dependent sceptres; and Octai, by general consent, was + proclaimed great khan, or emperor of the Moguls and Tartars. He was + succeeded by his son Gayuk, after whose death the empire devolved to his + cousins Mangou and Cublai, the sons of Tuli, and the grandsons of Zingis. + In the sixty-eight years of his four first successors, the Mogul subdued + almost all Asia, and a large portion of Europe. Without confining myself + to the order of time, without expatiating on the detail of events, I shall + present a general picture of the progress of their arms; I. In the East; + II. In the South; III. In the West; and IV. In the North. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-21" id="linkFnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ Zagatai gave his name to + his dominions of Maurenahar, or Transoxiana; and the Moguls of Hindostan, + who emigrated from that country, are styled Zagatais by the Persians. This + certain etymology, and the similar example of Uzbek, Nogai, &c., may + warn us not absolutely to reject the derivations of a national, from a + personal, name. * Note: See a curious anecdote of Tschagatai. Hist. des + Mongols, p. 370.—M.] + </p> + <p> + I. Before the invasion of Zingis, China was divided into two empires or + dynasties of the North and South; <a href="#linkFnote-22" + name="linkFnoteref-22" id="linkFnoteref-22">22</a> and the difference of + origin and interest was smoothed by a general conformity of laws, + language, and national manners. The Northern empire, which had been + dismembered by Zingis, was finally subdued seven years after his death. + After the loss of Pekin, the emperor had fixed his residence at Kaifong, a + city many leagues in circumference, and which contained, according to the + Chinese annals, fourteen hundred thousand families of inhabitants and + fugitives. He escaped from thence with only seven horsemen, and made his + last stand in a third capital, till at length the hopeless monarch, + protesting his innocence and accusing his fortune, ascended a funeral + pile, and gave orders, that, as soon as he had stabbed himself, the fire + should be kindled by his attendants. The dynasty of the <i>Song</i>, the + native and ancient sovereigns of the whole empire, survived about + forty-five years the fall of the Northern usurpers; and the perfect + conquest was reserved for the arms of Cublai. During this interval, the + Moguls were often diverted by foreign wars; and, if the Chinese seldom + dared to meet their victors in the field, their passive courage presented + and endless succession of cities to storm and of millions to slaughter. In + the attack and defence of places, the engines of antiquity and the Greek + fire were alternately employed: the use of gunpowder in cannon and bombs + appears as a familiar practice; <a href="#linkFnote-23" + name="linkFnoteref-23" id="linkFnoteref-23">23</a> and the sieges were + conducted by the Mahometans and Franks, who had been liberally invited + into the service of Cublai. After passing the great river, the troops and + artillery were conveyed along a series of canals, till they invested the + royal residence of Hamcheu, or Quinsay, in the country of silk, the most + delicious climate of China. The emperor, a defenceless youth, surrendered + his person and sceptre; and before he was sent in exile into Tartary, he + struck nine times the ground with his forehead, to adore in prayer or + thanksgiving the mercy of the great khan. Yet the war (it was now styled a + rebellion) was still maintained in the southern provinces from Hamcheu to + Canton; and the obstinate remnant of independence and hostility was + transported from the land to the sea. But when the fleet of the <i>Song</i> + was surrounded and oppressed by a superior armament, their last champion + leaped into the waves with his infant emperor in his arms. "It is more + glorious," he cried, "to die a prince, than to live a slave." A hundred + thousand Chinese imitated his example; and the whole empire, from Tonkin + to the great wall, submitted to the dominion of Cublai. His boundless + ambition aspired to the conquest of Japan: his fleet was twice + shipwrecked; and the lives of a hundred thousand Moguls and Chinese were + sacrificed in the fruitless expedition. But the circumjacent kingdoms, + Corea, Tonkin, Cochinchina, Pegu, Bengal, and Thibet, were reduced in + different degrees of tribute and obedience by the effort or terror of his + arms. He explored the Indian Ocean with a fleet of a thousand ships: they + sailed in sixty-eight days, most probably to the Isle of Borneo, under the + equinoctial line; and though they returned not without spoil or glory, the + emperor was dissatisfied that the savage king had escaped from their + hands. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-22" id="linkFnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ In Marco Polo, and the + Oriental geographers, the names of Cathay and Mangi distinguish the + northern and southern empires, which, from A.D. 1234 to 1279, were those + of the great khan, and of the Chinese. The search of Cathay, after China + had been found, excited and misled our navigators of the sixteenth + century, in their attempts to discover the north-east passage.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-23" id="linkFnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ I depend on the + knowledge and fidelity of the Père Gaubil, who translates the Chinese text + of the annals of the Moguls or Yuen, (p. 71, 93, 153;) but I am ignorant + at what time these annals were composed and published. The two uncles of + Marco Polo, who served as engineers at the siege of Siengyangfou, * (l. + ii. 61, in Ramusio, tom. ii. See Gaubil, p. 155, 157) must have felt and + related the effects of this destructive powder, and their silence is a + weighty, and almost decisive objection. I entertain a suspicion, that + their recent discovery was carried from Europe to China by the caravans of + the xvth century and falsely adopted as an old national discovery before + the arrival of the Portuguese and Jesuits in the xvith. Yet the Père + Gaubil affirms, that the use of gunpowder has been known to the Chinese + above 1600 years. ** Note: * Sou-houng-kian-lou. Abel Remusat.—M. + Note: ** La poudre à canon et d'autres compositions inflammantes, dont ils + se servent pour construire des pièces d'artifice d'un effet suprenant, + leur étaient connues depuis très long-temps, et l'on croit que des + bombardes et des pierriers, dont ils avaient enseigné l'usage aux + Tartares, ont pu donner en Europe l'idée d'artillerie, quoique la forme + des fusils et des canons dont ils se servent actuellement, leur ait été + apportée par les Francs, ainsi que l'attestent les noms mêmes qu'ils + donnent à ces sortes d'armes. Abel Remusat, Mélanges Asiat. 2d ser. tom. + i. p. 23.—M.] + </p> + <p> + II. The conquest of Hindostan by the Moguls was reserved in a later period + for the house of Timour; but that of Iran, or Persia, was achieved by + Holagou Khan, <a href="#linkFnote-231" name="linkFnoteref-231" + id="linkFnoteref-231">231</a> the grandson of Zingis, the brother and + lieutenant of the two successive emperors, Mangou and Cublai. I shall not + enumerate the crowd of sultans, emirs, and atabeks, whom he trampled into + dust; but the extirpation of the <i>Assassins</i>, or Ismaelians <a + href="#linkFnote-24" name="linkFnoteref-24" id="linkFnoteref-24">24</a> of + Persia, may be considered as a service to mankind. Among the hills to the + south of the Caspian, these odious sectaries had reigned with impunity + above a hundred and sixty years; and their prince, or Imam, established + his lieutenant to lead and govern the colony of Mount Libanus, so famous + and formidable in the history of the crusades. <a href="#linkFnote-25" + name="linkFnoteref-25" id="linkFnoteref-25">25</a> With the fanaticism of + the Koran the Ismaelians had blended the Indian transmigration, and the + visions of their own prophets; and it was their first duty to devote their + souls and bodies in blind obedience to the vicar of God. The daggers of + his missionaries were felt both in the East and West: the Christians and + the Moslems enumerate, and persons multiply, the illustrious victims that + were sacrificed to the zeal, avarice, or resentment of <i>the old man</i> + (as he was corruptly styled) <i>of the mountain</i>. But these daggers, + his only arms, were broken by the sword of Holagou, and not a vestige is + left of the enemies of mankind, except the word <i>assassin</i>, which, in + the most odious sense, has been adopted in the languages of Europe. The + extinction of the Abbassides cannot be indifferent to the spectators of + their greatness and decline. Since the fall of their Seljukian tyrants the + caliphs had recovered their lawful dominion of Bagdad and the Arabian + Irak; but the city was distracted by theological factions, and the + commander of the faithful was lost in a harem of seven hundred concubines. + The invasion of the Moguls he encountered with feeble arms and haughty + embassies. "On the divine decree," said the caliph Mostasem, "is founded + the throne of the sons of Abbas: and their foes shall surely be destroyed + in this world and in the next. Who is this Holagou that dares to rise + against them? If he be desirous of peace, let him instantly depart from + the sacred territory; and perhaps he may obtain from our clemency the + pardon of his fault." This presumption was cherished by a perfidious + vizier, who assured his master, that, even if the Barbarians had entered + the city, the women and children, from the terraces, would be sufficient + to overwhelm them with stones. But when Holagou touched the phantom, it + instantly vanished into smoke. After a siege of two months, Bagdad was + stormed and sacked by the Moguls; <a href="#linkFnote-251" + name="linkFnoteref-251" id="linkFnoteref-251">251</a> and their savage + commander pronounced the death of the caliph Mostasem, the last of the + temporal successors of Mahomet; whose noble kinsmen, of the race of Abbas, + had reigned in Asia above five hundred years. Whatever might be the + designs of the conqueror, the holy cities of Mecca and Medina <a + href="#linkFnote-26" name="linkFnoteref-26" id="linkFnoteref-26">26</a> + were protected by the Arabian desert; but the Moguls spread beyond the + Tigris and Euphrates, pillaged Aleppo and Damascus, and threatened to join + the Franks in the deliverance of Jerusalem. Egypt was lost, had she been + defended only by her feeble offspring; but the Mamalukes had breathed in + their infancy the keenness of a Scythian air: equal in valor, superior in + discipline, they met the Moguls in many a well-fought field; and drove + back the stream of hostility to the eastward of the Euphrates. <a + href="#linkFnote-261" name="linkFnoteref-261" id="linkFnoteref-261">261</a> + But it overflowed with resistless violence the kingdoms of Armenia <a + href="#linkFnote-262" name="linkFnoteref-262" id="linkFnoteref-262">262</a> + and Anatolia, of which the former was possessed by the Christians, and the + latter by the Turks. The sultans of Iconium opposed some resistance to the + Mogul arms, till Azzadin sought a refuge among the Greeks of + Constantinople, and his feeble successors, the last of the Seljukian + dynasty, were finally extirpated by the khans of Persia. <a + href="#linkFnote-263" name="linkFnoteref-263" id="linkFnoteref-263">263</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-231" id="linkFnote-231"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 231 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-231">return</a>)<br /> [ See the curious + account of the expedition of Holagou, translated from the Chinese, by M. + Abel Remusat, Mélanges Asiat. 2d ser. tom. i. p. 171.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-24" id="linkFnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ All that can be known of + the Assassins of Persia and Syria is poured from the copious, and even + profuse, erudition of M. Falconet, in two <i>Mémoires</i> read before the + Academy of Inscriptions, (tom. xvii. p. 127—170.) * Note: Von + Hammer's History of the Assassins has now thrown Falconet's Dissertation + into the shade.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-25" id="linkFnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ The Ismaelians of Syria, + 40,000 Assassins, had acquired or founded ten castles in the hills above + Tortosa. About the year 1280, they were extirpated by the Mamalukes.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-251" id="linkFnote-251"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 251 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-251">return</a>)<br /> [ Compare Von Hammer, + Geschichte der Assassinen, p. 283, 307. Wilken, Geschichte der Kreuzzüge, + vol. vii. p. 406. Price, Chronological Retrospect, vol. ii. p. 217—223.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-26" id="linkFnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ As a proof of the + ignorance of the Chinese in foreign transactions, I must observe, that + some of their historians extend the conquest of Zingis himself to Medina, + the country of Mahomet, (Gaubil p. 42.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-261" id="linkFnote-261"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 261 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-261">return</a>)<br /> [ Compare Wilken, vol. + vii. p. 410.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-262" id="linkFnote-262"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 262 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-262">return</a>)<br /> [ On the friendly + relations of the Armenians with the Mongols see Wilken, Geschichte der + Kreuzzüge, vol. vii. p. 402. They eagerly desired an alliance against the + Mahometan powers.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-263" id="linkFnote-263"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 263 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-263">return</a>)<br /> [ Trebizond escaped, + apparently by the dexterous politics of the sovereign, but it acknowledged + the Mogul supremacy. Falmerayer, p. 172.—M.] + </p> + <p> + III. No sooner had Octai subverted the northern empire of China, than he + resolved to visit with his arms the most remote countries of the West. + Fifteen hundred thousand Moguls and Tartars were inscribed on the military + roll: of these the great khan selected a third, which he intrusted to the + command of his nephew Batou, the son of Tuli; who reigned over his + father's conquests to the north of the Caspian Sea. <a + href="#linkFnote-264" name="linkFnoteref-264" id="linkFnoteref-264">264</a> + After a festival of forty days, Batou set forwards on this great + expedition; and such was the speed and ardor of his innumerable squadrons, + than in less than six years they had measured a line of ninety degrees of + longitude, a fourth part of the circumference of the globe. The great + rivers of Asia and Europe, the Volga and Kama, the Don and Borysthenes, + the Vistula and Danube, they either swam with their horses or passed on + the ice, or traversed in leathern boats, which followed the camp, and + transported their wagons and artillery. By the first victories of Batou, + the remains of national freedom were eradicated in the immense plains of + Turkestan and Kipzak. <a href="#linkFnote-27" name="linkFnoteref-27" + id="linkFnoteref-27">27</a> In his rapid progress, he overran the + kingdoms, as they are now styled, of Astracan and Cazan; and the troops + which he detached towards Mount Caucasus explored the most secret recesses + of Georgia and Circassia. The civil discord of the great dukes, or + princes, of Russia, betrayed their country to the Tartars. They spread + from Livonia to the Black Sea, and both Moscow and Kiow, the modern and + the ancient capitals, were reduced to ashes; a temporary ruin, less fatal + than the deep, and perhaps indelible, mark, which a servitude of two + hundred years has imprinted on the character of the Russians. The Tartars + ravaged with equal fury the countries which they hoped to possess, and + those which they were hastening to leave. From the permanent conquest of + Russia they made a deadly, though transient, inroad into the heart of + Poland, and as far as the borders of Germany. The cities of Lublin and + Cracow were obliterated: <a href="#linkFnote-271" name="linkFnoteref-271" + id="linkFnoteref-271">271</a> they approached the shores of the Baltic; + and in the battle of Lignitz they defeated the dukes of Silesia, the + Polish palatines, and the great master of the Teutonic order, and filled + nine sacks with the right ears of the slain. From Lignitz, the extreme + point of their western march, they turned aside to the invasion of + Hungary; and the presence or spirit of Batou inspired the host of five + hundred thousand men: the Carpathian hills could not be long impervious to + their divided columns; and their approach had been fondly disbelieved till + it was irresistibly felt. The king, Bela the Fourth, assembled the + military force of his counts and bishops; but he had alienated the nation + by adopting a vagrant horde of forty thousand families of Comans, and + these savage guests were provoked to revolt by the suspicion of treachery + and the murder of their prince. The whole country north of the Danube was + lost in a day, and depopulated in a summer; and the ruins of cities and + churches were overspread with the bones of the natives, who expiated the + sins of their Turkish ancestors. An ecclesiastic, who fled from the sack + of Waradin, describes the calamities which he had seen, or suffered; and + the sanguinary rage of sieges and battles is far less atrocious than the + treatment of the fugitives, who had been allured from the woods under a + promise of peace and pardon and who were coolly slaughtered as soon as + they had performed the labors of the harvest and vintage. In the winter + the Tartars passed the Danube on the ice, and advanced to Gran or + Strigonium, a German colony, and the metropolis of the kingdom. Thirty + engines were planted against the walls; the ditches were filled with sacks + of earth and dead bodies; and after a promiscuous massacre, three hundred + noble matrons were slain in the presence of the khan. Of all the cities + and fortresses of Hungary, three alone survived the Tartar invasion, and + the unfortunate Bata hid his head among the islands of the Adriatic. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-264" id="linkFnote-264"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 264 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-264">return</a>)<br /> [ See the curious + extracts from the Mahometan writers, Hist. des Mongols, p. 707.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-27" id="linkFnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ The <i>Dashté Kipzak</i>, + or plain of Kipzak, extends on either side of the Volga, in a boundless + space towards the Jaik and Borysthenes, and is supposed to contain the + primitive name and nation of the Cossacks.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-271" id="linkFnote-271"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 271 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-271">return</a>)<br /> [ Olmutz was gallantly + and successfully defended by Stenberg, Hist. des Mongols, p. 396.—M.] + </p> + <p> + The Latin world was darkened by this cloud of savage hostility: a Russian + fugitive carried the alarm to Sweden; and the remote nations of the Baltic + and the ocean trembled at the approach of the Tartars, <a + href="#linkFnote-28" name="linkFnoteref-28" id="linkFnoteref-28">28</a> + whom their fear and ignorance were inclined to separate from the human + species. Since the invasion of the Arabs in the eighth century, Europe had + never been exposed to a similar calamity: and if the disciples of Mahomet + would have oppressed her religion and liberty, it might be apprehended + that the shepherds of Scythia would extinguish her cities, her arts, and + all the institutions of civil society. The Roman pontiff attempted to + appease and convert these invincible Pagans by a mission of Franciscan and + Dominican friars; but he was astonished by the reply of the khan, that the + sons of God and of Zingis were invested with a divine power to subdue or + extirpate the nations; and that the pope would be involved in the + universal destruction, unless he visited in person, and as a suppliant, + the royal horde. The emperor Frederic the Second embraced a more generous + mode of defence; and his letters to the kings of France and England, and + the princes of Germany, represented the common danger, and urged them to + arm their vassals in this just and rational crusade. <a + href="#linkFnote-29" name="linkFnoteref-29" id="linkFnoteref-29">29</a> + The Tartars themselves were awed by the fame and valor of the Franks; the + town of Newstadt in Austria was bravely defended against them by fifty + knights and twenty crossbows; and they raised the siege on the appearance + of a German army. After wasting the adjacent kingdoms of Servia, Bosnia, + and Bulgaria, Batou slowly retreated from the Danube to the Volga to + enjoyed the rewards of victory in the city and palace of Serai, which + started at his command from the midst of the desert. <a + href="#linkFnote-291" name="linkFnoteref-291" id="linkFnoteref-291">291</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-28" id="linkFnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ In the year 1238, the + inhabitants of Gothia (<i>Sweden</i>) and Frise were prevented, by their + fear of the Tartars, from sending, as usual, their ships to the herring + fishery on the coast of England; and as there was no exportation, forty or + fifty of these fish were sold for a shilling, (Matthew Paris, p. 396.) It + is whimsical enough, that the orders of a Mogul khan, who reigned on the + borders of China, should have lowered the price of herrings in the English + market.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-29" id="linkFnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ I shall copy his + characteristic or flattering epithets of the different countries of + Europe: Furens ac fervens ad arma Germania, strenuæ militiæ genitrix et + alumna Francia, bellicosa et audax Hispania, virtuosa viris et classe + munita fertilis Anglia, impetuosis bellatoribus referta Alemannia, navalis + Dacia, indomita Italia, pacis ignara Burgundia, inquieta Apulia, cum maris + Græci, Adriatici et Tyrrheni insulis pyraticis et invictis, Cretâ, Cypro, + Siciliâ, cum Oceano conterterminis insulis, et regionibus, cruenta + Hybernia, cum agili Wallia palustris Scotia, glacialis Norwegia, suam + electam militiam sub vexillo Crucis destinabunt, &c. (Matthew Paris, + p. 498.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-291" id="linkFnote-291"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 291 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-291">return</a>)<br /> [ He was recalled by the + death of Octai.—M.] + </p> + <p> + IV. Even the poor and frozen regions of the north attracted the arms of + the Moguls: Sheibani khan, the brother of the great Batou, led a horde of + fifteen thousand families into the wilds of Siberia; and his descendants + reigned at Tobolskoi above three centuries, till the Russian conquest. The + spirit of enterprise which pursued the course of the Oby and Yenisei must + have led to the discovery of the icy sea. After brushing away the + monstrous fables, of men with dogs' heads and cloven feet, we shall find, + that, fifteen years after the death of Zingis, the Moguls were informed of + the name and manners of the Samoyedes in the neighborhood of the polar + circle, who dwelt in subterraneous huts, and derived their furs and their + food from the sole occupation of hunting. <a href="#linkFnote-30" + name="linkFnoteref-30" id="linkFnoteref-30">30</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-30" id="linkFnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ See Carpin's relation in + Hackluyt, vol. i. p. 30. The pedigree of the khans of Siberia is given by + Abulghazi, (part viii. p. 485—495.) Have the Russians found no + Tartar chronicles at Tobolskoi? * Note: * See the account of the Mongol + library in Bergman, Nomadische Streifereyen, vol. iii. p. 185, 205, and + Remusat, Hist. des Langues Tartares, p. 327, and preface to Schmidt, + Geschichte der Ost-Mongolen.—M.] + </p> + <p> + While China, Syria, and Poland, were invaded at the same time by the + Moguls and Tartars, the authors of the mighty mischief were content with + the knowledge and declaration, that their word was the sword of death. + Like the first caliphs, the first successors of Zingis seldom appeared in + person at the head of their victorious armies. On the banks of the Onon + and Selinga, the royal or <i>golden horde</i> exhibited the contrast of + simplicity and greatness; of the roasted sheep and mare's milk which + composed their banquets; and of a distribution in one day of five hundred + wagons of gold and silver. The ambassadors and princes of Europe and Asia + were compelled to undertake this distant and laborious pilgrimage; and the + life and reign of the great dukes of Russia, the kings of Georgia and + Armenia, the sultans of Iconium, and the emirs of Persia, were decided by + the frown or smile of the great khan. The sons and grandsons of Zingis had + been accustomed to the pastoral life; but the village of Caracorum <a + href="#linkFnote-31" name="linkFnoteref-31" id="linkFnoteref-31">31</a> + was gradually ennobled by their election and residence. A change of + manners is implied in the removal of Octai and Mangou from a tent to a + house; and their example was imitated by the princes of their family and + the great officers of the empire. Instead of the boundless forest, the + enclosure of a park afforded the more indolent pleasures of the chase; + their new habitations were decorated with painting and sculpture; their + superfluous treasures were cast in fountains, and basins, and statues of + massy silver; and the artists of China and Paris vied with each other in + the service of the great khan. <a href="#linkFnote-32" + name="linkFnoteref-32" id="linkFnoteref-32">32</a> Caracorum contained two + streets, the one of Chinese mechanics, the other of Mahometan traders; and + the places of religious worship, one Nestorian church, two mosques, and + twelve temples of various idols, may represent in some degree the number + and division of inhabitants. Yet a French missionary declares, that the + town of St. Denys, near Paris, was more considerable than the Tartar + capital; and that the whole palace of Mangou was scarcely equal to a tenth + part of that Benedictine abbey. The conquests of Russia and Syria might + amuse the vanity of the great khans; but they were seated on the borders + of China; the acquisition of that empire was the nearest and most + interesting object; and they might learn from their pastoral economy, that + it is for the advantage of the shepherd to protect and propagate his + flock. I have already celebrated the wisdom and virtue of a Mandarin who + prevented the desolation of five populous and cultivated provinces. In a + spotless administration of thirty years, this friend of his country and of + mankind continually labored to mitigate, or suspend, the havoc of war; to + save the monuments, and to rekindle the flame, of science; to restrain the + military commander by the restoration of civil magistrates; and to instil + the love of peace and justice into the minds of the Moguls. He struggled + with the barbarism of the first conquerors; but his salutary lessons + produced a rich harvest in the second generation. <a href="#linkFnote-321" + name="linkFnoteref-321" id="linkFnoteref-321">321</a> The northern, and by + degrees the southern, empire acquiesced in the government of Cublai, the + lieutenant, and afterwards the successor, of Mangou; and the nation was + loyal to a prince who had been educated in the manners of China. He + restored the forms of her venerable constitution; and the victors + submitted to the laws, the fashions, and even the prejudices, of the + vanquished people. This peaceful triumph, which has been more than once + repeated, may be ascribed, in a great measure, to the numbers and + servitude of the Chinese. The Mogul army was dissolved in a vast and + populous country; and their emperors adopted with pleasure a political + system, which gives to the prince the solid substance of despotism, and + leaves to the subject the empty names of philosophy, freedom, and filial + obedience. <a href="#linkFnote-322" name="linkFnoteref-322" + id="linkFnoteref-322">322</a> Under the reign of Cublai, letters and + commerce, peace and justice, were restored; the great canal, of five + hundred miles, was opened from Nankin to the capital: he fixed his + residence at Pekin; and displayed in his court the magnificence of the + greatest monarch of Asia. Yet this learned prince declined from the pure + and simple religion of his great ancestor: he sacrificed to the idol Fo; + and his blind attachment to the lamas of Thibet and the bonzes of China <a + href="#linkFnote-33" name="linkFnoteref-33" id="linkFnoteref-33">33</a> + provoked the censure of the disciples of Confucius. His successors + polluted the palace with a crowd of eunuchs, physicians, and astrologers, + while thirteen millions of their subjects were consumed in the provinces + by famine. One hundred and forty years after the death of Zingis, his + degenerate race, the dynasty of the Yuen, was expelled by a revolt of the + native Chinese; and the Mogul emperors were lost in the oblivion of the + desert. Before this revolution, they had forfeited their supremacy over + the dependent branches of their house, the khans of Kipzak and Russia, the + khans of Zagatai, or Transoxiana, and the khans of Iran or Persia. By + their distance and power, these royal lieutenants had soon been released + from the duties of obedience; and after the death of Cublai, they scorned + to accept a sceptre or a title from his unworthy successors. According to + their respective situations, they maintained the simplicity of the + pastoral life, or assumed the luxury of the cities of Asia; but the + princes and their hordes were alike disposed for the reception of a + foreign worship. After some hesitation between the Gospel and the Koran, + they conformed to the religion of Mahomet; and while they adopted for + their brethren the Arabs and Persians, they renounced all intercourse with + the ancient Moguls, the idolaters of China. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-31" id="linkFnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ The Map of D'Anville and + the Chinese Itineraries (De Guignes, tom. i. part ii. p. 57) seem to mark + the position of Holin, or Caracorum, about six hundred miles to the + north-west of Pekin. The distance between Selinginsky and Pekin is near + 2000 Russian versts, between 1300 and 1400 English miles, (Bell's Travels, + vol. ii. p. 67.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-32" id="linkFnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ Rubruquis found at + Caracorum his <i>countryman Guillaume Boucher, orfevre de Paris</i>, who + had executed for the khan a silver tree supported by four lions, and + ejecting four different liquors. Abulghazi (part iv. p. 366) mentions the + painters of Kitay or China.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-321" id="linkFnote-321"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 321 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-321">return</a>)<br /> [ See the interesting + sketch of the life of this minister (Yelin-Thsouthsai) in the second + volume of the second series of Recherches Asiatiques, par A Remusat, p. + 64.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-322" id="linkFnote-322"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 322 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-322">return</a>)<br /> [ Compare Hist. des + Mongols, p. 616.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-33" id="linkFnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ The attachment of the + khans, and the hatred of the mandarins, to the bonzes and lamas (Duhalde, + Hist. de la Chine, tom. i. p. 502, 503) seems to represent them as the + priests of the same god, of the Indian <i>Fo</i>, whose worship prevails + among the sects of Hindostan Siam, Thibet, China, and Japan. But this + mysterious subject is still lost in a cloud, which the researchers of our + Asiatic Society may gradually dispel.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkF2HCH0003" id="linkF2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXIV: Moguls, Ottoman Turks.—Part III. + </h2> + <p> + In this shipwreck of nations, some surprise may be excited by the escape + of the Roman empire, whose relics, at the time of the Mogul invasion, were + dismembered by the Greeks and Latins. Less potent than Alexander, they + were pressed, like the Macedonian, both in Europe and Asia, by the + shepherds of Scythia; and had the Tartars undertaken the siege, + Constantinople must have yielded to the fate of Pekin, Samarcand, and + Bagdad. The glorious and voluntary retreat of Batou from the Danube was + insulted by the vain triumph of the Franks and Greeks; <a + href="#linkFnote-34" name="linkFnoteref-34" id="linkFnoteref-34">34</a> + and in a second expedition death surprised him in full march to attack the + capital of the Cæsars. His brother Borga carried the Tartar arms into + Bulgaria and Thrace; but he was diverted from the Byzantine war by a visit + to Novogorod, in the fifty-seventh degree of latitude, where he numbered + the inhabitants and regulated the tributes of Russia. The Mogul khan + formed an alliance with the Mamalukes against his brethren of Persia: + three hundred thousand horse penetrated through the gates of Derbend; and + the Greeks might rejoice in the first example of domestic war. After the + recovery of Constantinople, Michael Palæologus, <a href="#linkFnote-35" + name="linkFnoteref-35" id="linkFnoteref-35">35</a> at a distance from his + court and army, was surprised and surrounded in a Thracian castle, by + twenty thousand Tartars. But the object of their march was a private + interest: they came to the deliverance of Azzadin, the Turkish sultan; and + were content with his person and the treasure of the emperor. Their + general Noga, whose name is perpetuated in the hordes of Astracan, raised + a formidable rebellion against Mengo Timour, the third of the khans of + Kipzak; obtained in marriage Maria, the natural daughter of Palæologus; + and guarded the dominions of his friend and father. The subsequent + invasions of a Scythian cast were those of outlaws and fugitives: and some + thousands of Alani and Comans, who had been driven from their native + seats, were reclaimed from a vagrant life, and enlisted in the service of + the empire. Such was the influence in Europe of the invasion of the + Moguls. The first terror of their arms secured, rather than disturbed, the + peace of the Roman Asia. The sultan of Iconium solicited a personal + interview with John Vataces; and his artful policy encouraged the Turks to + defend their barrier against the common enemy. <a href="#linkFnote-36" + name="linkFnoteref-36" id="linkFnoteref-36">36</a> That barrier indeed was + soon overthrown; and the servitude and ruin of the Seljukians exposed the + nakedness of the Greeks. The formidable Holagou threatened to march to + Constantinople at the head of four hundred thousand men; and the + groundless panic of the citizens of Nice will present an image of the + terror which he had inspired. The accident of a procession, and the sound + of a doleful litany, "From the fury of the Tartars, good Lord, deliver + us," had scattered the hasty report of an assault and massacre. In the + blind credulity of fear, the streets of Nice were crowded with thousands + of both sexes, who knew not from what or to whom they fled; and some hours + elapsed before the firmness of the military officers could relieve the + city from this imaginary foe. But the ambition of Holagou and his + successors was fortunately diverted by the conquest of Bagdad, and a long + vicissitude of Syrian wars; their hostility to the Moslems inclined them + to unite with the Greeks and Franks; <a href="#linkFnote-37" + name="linkFnoteref-37" id="linkFnoteref-37">37</a> and their generosity or + contempt had offered the kingdom of Anatolia as the reward of an Armenian + vassal. The fragments of the Seljukian monarchy were disputed by the emirs + who had occupied the cities or the mountains; but they all confessed the + supremacy of the khans of Persia; and he often interposed his authority, + and sometimes his arms, to check their depredations, and to preserve the + peace and balance of his Turkish frontier. The death of Cazan, <a + href="#linkFnote-38" name="linkFnoteref-38" id="linkFnoteref-38">38</a> + one of the greatest and most accomplished princes of the house of Zingis, + removed this salutary control; and the decline of the Moguls gave a free + scope to the rise and progress of the Ottoman Empire. <a + href="#linkFnote-39" name="linkFnoteref-39" id="linkFnoteref-39">39</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-34" id="linkFnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ Some repulse of the + Moguls in Hungary (Matthew Paris, p. 545, 546) might propagate and color + the report of the union and victory of the kings of the Franks on the + confines of Bulgaria. Abulpharagius (Dynast. p. 310) after forty years, + beyond the Tigris, might be easily deceived.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-35" id="linkFnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ See Pachymer, l. iii. c. + 25, and l. ix. c. 26, 27; and the false alarm at Nice, l. iii. c. 27. + Nicephorus Gregoras, l. iv. c. 6.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-36" id="linkFnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ G. Acropolita, p. 36, + 37. Nic. Greg. l. ii. c. 6, l. iv. c. 5.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-37" id="linkFnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ Abulpharagius, who wrote + in the year 1284, declares that the Moguls, since the fabulous defeat of + Batou, had not attacked either the Franks or Greeks; and of this he is a + competent witness. Hayton likewise, the Armenian prince, celebrates their + friendship for himself and his nation.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-38" id="linkFnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer gives a + splendid character of Cazan Khan, the rival of Cyrus and Alexander, (l. + xii. c. 1.) In the conclusion of his history (l. xiii. c. 36) he <i>hopes</i> + much from the arrival of 30,000 Tochars, or Tartars, who were ordered by + the successor of Cazan to restrain the Turks of Bithynia, A.D. 1308.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-39" id="linkFnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ The origin of the + Ottoman dynasty is illustrated by the critical learning of Mm. De Guignes + (Hist. des Huns, tom. iv. p. 329—337) and D'Anville, (Empire Turc, + p. 14—22,) two inhabitants of Paris, from whom the Orientals may + learn the history and geography of their own country. * Note: They may be + still more enlightened by the Geschichte des Osman Reiches, by M. von + Hammer Purgstall of Vienna.—M.] + </p> + <p> + After the retreat of Zingis, the sultan Gelaleddin of Carizme had returned + from India to the possession and defence of his Persian kingdoms. In the + space of eleven years, that hero fought in person fourteen battles; and + such was his activity, that he led his cavalry in seventeen days from + Teflis to Kerman, a march of a thousand miles. Yet he was oppressed by the + jealousy of the Moslem princes, and the innumerable armies of the Moguls; + and after his last defeat, Gelaleddin perished ignobly in the mountains of + Curdistan. His death dissolved a veteran and adventurous army, which + included under the name of Carizmians or Corasmins many Turkman hordes, + that had attached themselves to the sultan's fortune. The bolder and more + powerful chiefs invaded Syria, and violated the holy sepulchre of + Jerusalem: the more humble engaged in the service of Aladin, sultan of + Iconium; and among these were the obscure fathers of the Ottoman line. + They had formerly pitched their tents near the southern banks of the Oxus, + in the plains of Mahan and Nesa; and it is somewhat remarkable, that the + same spot should have produced the first authors of the Parthian and + Turkish empires. At the head, or in the rear, of a Carizmian army, Soliman + Shah was drowned in the passage of the Euphrates: his son Orthogrul became + the soldier and subject of Aladin, and established at Surgut, on the banks + of the Sangar, a camp of four hundred families or tents, whom he governed + fifty-two years both in peace and war. He was the father of Thaman, or + Athman, whose Turkish name has been melted into the appellation of the + caliph Othman; and if we describe that pastoral chief as a shepherd and a + robber, we must separate from those characters all idea of ignominy and + baseness. Othman possessed, and perhaps surpassed, the ordinary virtues of + a soldier; and the circumstances of time and place were propitious to his + independence and success. The Seljukian dynasty was no more; and the + distance and decline of the Mogul khans soon enfranchised him from the + control of a superior. He was situate on the verge of the Greek empire: + the Koran sanctified his <i>gazi</i>, or holy war, against the infidels; + and their political errors unlocked the passes of Mount Olympus, and + invited him to descend into the plains of Bithynia. Till the reign of + Palæologus, these passes had been vigilantly guarded by the militia of the + country, who were repaid by their own safety and an exemption from taxes. + The emperor abolished their privilege and assumed their office; but the + tribute was rigorously collected, the custody of the passes was neglected, + and the hardy mountaineers degenerated into a trembling crowd of peasants + without spirit or discipline. It was on the twenty-seventh of July, in the + year twelve hundred and ninety-nine of the Christian æra, that Othman + first invaded the territory of Nicomedia; <a href="#linkFnote-40" + name="linkFnoteref-40" id="linkFnoteref-40">40</a> and the singular + accuracy of the date seems to disclose some foresight of the rapid and + destructive growth of the monster. The annals of the twenty-seven years of + his reign would exhibit a repetition of the same inroads; and his + hereditary troops were multiplied in each campaign by the accession of + captives and volunteers. Instead of retreating to the hills, he maintained + the most useful and defensive posts; fortified the towns and castles which + he had first pillaged; and renounced the pastoral life for the baths and + palaces of his infant capitals. But it was not till Othman was oppressed + by age and infirmities, that he received the welcome news of the conquest + of Prusa, which had been surrendered by famine or treachery to the arms of + his son Orchan. The glory of Othman is chiefly founded on that of his + descendants; but the Turks have transcribed or composed a royal testament + of his last counsels of justice and moderation. <a href="#linkFnote-41" + name="linkFnoteref-41" id="linkFnoteref-41">41</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-40" id="linkFnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ See Pachymer, l. x. c. + 25, 26, l. xiii. c. 33, 34, 36; and concerning the guard of the mountains, + l. i. c. 3—6: Nicephorus Gregoras, l. vii. c. l., and the first book + of Laonicus Chalcondyles, the Athenian.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-41" id="linkFnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ I am ignorant whether + the Turks have any writers older than Mahomet II., * nor can I reach + beyond a meagre chronicle (Annales Turcici ad Annum 1550) translated by + John Gaudier, and published by Leunclavius, (ad calcem Laonic. Chalcond. + p. 311—350,) with copious pandects, or commentaries. The history of + the Growth and Decay (A.D. 1300—1683) of the Othman empire was + translated into English from the Latin MS. of Demetrius Cantemir, prince + of Moldavia, (London, 1734, in folio.) The author is guilty of strange + blunders in Oriental history; but he was conversant with the language, the + annals, and institutions of the Turks. Cantemir partly draws his materials + from the Synopsis of Saadi Effendi of Larissa, dedicated in the year 1696 + to Sultan Mustapha, and a valuable abridgment of the original historians. + In one of the Ramblers, Dr. Johnson praises Knolles (a General History of + the Turks to the present Year. London, 1603) as the first of historians, + unhappy only in the choice of his subject. Yet I much doubt whether a + partial and verbose compilation from Latin writers, thirteen hundred folio + pages of speeches and battles, can either instruct or amuse an enlightened + age, which requires from the historian some tincture of philosophy and + criticism. Note: * We could have wished that M. von Hammer had given a + more clear and distinct reply to this question of Gibbon. In a Fnote, vol. + i. p. 630. M. von Hammer shows that they had not only sheiks (religious + writers) and learned lawyers, but poets and authors on medicine. But the + inquiry of Gibbon obviously refers to historians. The oldest of their + historical works, of which V. Hammer makes use, is the "Tarichi Aaschik + Paschasade," i. e. the History of the Great Grandson of Aaschik Pasha, who + was a dervis and celebrated ascetic poet in the reign of Murad (Amurath) + I. Ahmed, the author of the work, lived during the reign of Bajazet II., + but, he says, derived much information from the book of Scheik Jachshi, + the son of Elias, who was Imaum to Sultan Orchan, (the second Ottoman + king) and who related, from the lips of his father, the circumstances of + the earliest Ottoman history. This book (having searched for it in vain + for five-and-twenty years) our author found at length in the Vatican. All + the other Turkish histories on his list, as indeed this, were <i>written</i> + during the reign of Mahomet II. It does not appear whether any of the rest + cite earlier authorities of equal value with that claimed by the "Tarichi + Aaschik Paschasade."—M. (in Quarterly Review, vol. xlix. p. 292.)] + </p> + <p> + From the conquest of Prusa, we may date the true æra of the Ottoman + empire. The lives and possessions of the Christian subjects were redeemed + by a tribute or ransom of thirty thousand crowns of gold; and the city, by + the labors of Orchan, assumed the aspect of a Mahometan capital; Prusa was + decorated with a mosque, a college, and a hospital, of royal foundation; + the Seljukian coin was changed for the name and impression of the new + dynasty: and the most skilful professors, of human and divine knowledge, + attracted the Persian and Arabian students from the ancient schools of + Oriental learning. The office of vizier was instituted for Aladin, the + brother of Orchan; <a href="#linkFnote-411" name="linkFnoteref-411" + id="linkFnoteref-411">411</a> and a different habit distinguished the + citizens from the peasants, the Moslems from the infidels. All the troops + of Othman had consisted of loose squadrons of Turkman cavalry; who served + without pay and fought without discipline: but a regular body of infantry + was first established and trained by the prudence of his son. A great + number of volunteers was enrolled with a small stipend, but with the + permission of living at home, unless they were summoned to the field: + their rude manners, and seditious temper, disposed Orchan to educate his + young captives as his soldiers and those of the prophet; but the Turkish + peasants were still allowed to mount on horseback, and follow his + standard, with the appellation and the hopes of <i>freebooters</i>. <a + href="#linkFnote-412" name="linkFnoteref-412" id="linkFnoteref-412">412</a> + By these arts he formed an army of twenty-five thousand Moslems: a train + of battering engines was framed for the use of sieges; and the first + successful experiment was made on the cities of Nice and Nicomedia. Orchan + granted a safe-conduct to all who were desirous of departing with their + families and effects; but the widows of the slain were given in marriage + to the conquerors; and the sacrilegious plunder, the books, the vases, and + the images, were sold or ransomed at Constantinople. The emperor + Andronicus the Younger was vanquished and wounded by the son of Othman: <a + href="#linkFnote-42" name="linkFnoteref-42" id="linkFnoteref-42">42</a> <a + href="#linkFnote-421" name="linkFnoteref-421" id="linkFnoteref-421">421</a> + he subdued the whole province or kingdom of Bithynia, as far as the shores + of the Bosphorus and Hellespont; and the Christians confessed the justice + and clemency of a reign which claimed the voluntary attachment of the + Turks of Asia. Yet Orchan was content with the modest title of emir; and + in the list of his compeers, the princes of Roum or Anatolia, <a + href="#linkFnote-43" name="linkFnoteref-43" id="linkFnoteref-43">43</a> + his military forces were surpassed by the emirs of Ghermian and Caramania, + each of whom could bring into the field an army of forty thousand men. + Their domains were situate in the heart of the Seljukian kingdom; but the + holy warriors, though of inferior note, who formed new principalities on + the Greek empire, are more conspicuous in the light of history. The + maritime country from the Propontis to the Mæander and the Isle of Rhodes, + so long threatened and so often pillaged, was finally lost about the + thirteenth year of Andronicus the Elder. <a href="#linkFnote-44" + name="linkFnoteref-44" id="linkFnoteref-44">44</a> Two Turkish chieftains, + Sarukhan and Aidin, left their names to their conquests, and their + conquests to their posterity. The captivity or ruin of the <i>seven</i> + churches of Asia was consummated; and the barbarous lords of Ionia and + Lydia still trample on the monuments of classic and Christian antiquity. + In the loss of Ephesus, the Christians deplored the fall of the first + angel, the extinction of the first candlestick, of the Revelations; <a + href="#linkFnote-45" name="linkFnoteref-45" id="linkFnoteref-45">45</a> + the desolation is complete; and the temple of Diana, or the church of + Mary, will equally elude the search of the curious traveller. The circus + and three stately theatres of Laodicea are now peopled with wolves and + foxes; Sardes is reduced to a miserable village; the God of Mahomet, + without a rival or a son, is invoked in the mosques of Thyatira and + Pergamus; and the populousness of Smyrna is supported by the foreign trade + of the Franks and Armenians. Philadelphia alone has been saved by + prophecy, or courage. At a distance from the sea, forgotten by the + emperors, encompassed on all sides by the Turks, her valiant citizens + defended their religion and freedom above fourscore years; and at length + capitulated with the proudest of the Ottomans. Among the Greek colonies + and churches of Asia, Philadelphia is still erect; a column in a scene of + ruins; a pleasing example, that the paths of honor and safety may + sometimes be the same. The servitude of Rhodes was delayed about two + centuries by the establishment of the knights of St. John of Jerusalem: <a + href="#linkFnote-46" name="linkFnoteref-46" id="linkFnoteref-46">46</a> + under the discipline of the order, that island emerged into fame and + opulence; the noble and warlike monks were renowned by land and sea: and + the bulwark of Christendom provoked, and repelled, the arms of the Turks + and Saracens. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-411" id="linkFnote-411"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 411 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-411">return</a>)<br /> [ Von Hammer, Osm. + Geschichte, vol. i. p. 82.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-412" id="linkFnote-412"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 412 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-412">return</a>)<br /> [ Ibid. p. 91.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-42" id="linkFnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantacuzene, though he + relates the battle and heroic flight of the younger Andronicus, (l. ii. c. + 6, 7, 8,) dissembles by his silence the loss of Prusa, Nice, and + Nicomedia, which are fairly confessed by Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. viii. + 15, ix. 9, 13, xi. 6.) It appears that Nice was taken by Orchan in 1330, + and Nicomedia in 1339, which are somewhat different from the Turkish + dates.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-421" id="linkFnote-421"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 421 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-421">return</a>)<br /> [ For the conquests of + Orchan over the ten pachaliks, or kingdoms of the Seljukians, in Asia + Minor. see V. Hammer, vol. i. p. 112.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-43" id="linkFnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ The partition of the + Turkish emirs is extracted from two contemporaries, the Greek Nicephorus + Gregoras (l. vii. 1) and the Arabian Marakeschi, (De Guignes, tom. ii. P. + ii. p. 76, 77.) See likewise the first book of Laonicus Chalcondyles.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-44" id="linkFnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ Pachymer, l. xiii. c. + 13.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-45" id="linkFnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Travels of + Wheeler and Spon, of Pocock and Chandler, and more particularly Smith's + Survey of the Seven Churches of Asia, p. 205—276. The more pious + antiquaries labor to reconcile the promises and threats of the author of + the Revelations with the <i>present</i> state of the seven cities. Perhaps + it would be more prudent to confine his predictions to the characters and + events of his own times.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-46" id="linkFnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ Consult the ivth book of + the Histoire de l'Ordre de Malthe, par l'Abbé de Vertot. That pleasing + writer betrays his ignorance, in supposing that Othman, a freebooter of + the Bithynian hills, could besiege Rhodes by sea and land.] + </p> + <p> + The Greeks, by their intestine divisions, were the authors of their final + ruin. During the civil wars of the elder and younger Andronicus, the son + of Othman achieved, almost without resistance, the conquest of Bithynia; + and the same disorders encouraged the Turkish emirs of Lydia and Ionia to + build a fleet, and to pillage the adjacent islands and the sea-coast of + Europe. In the defence of his life and honor, Cantacuzene was tempted to + prevent, or imitate, his adversaries, by calling to his aid the public + enemies of his religion and country. Amir, the son of Aidin, concealed + under a Turkish garb the humanity and politeness of a Greek; he was united + with the great domestic by mutual esteem and reciprocal services; and + their friendship is compared, in the vain rhetoric of the times, to the + perfect union of Orestes and Pylades. <a href="#linkFnote-47" + name="linkFnoteref-47" id="linkFnoteref-47">47</a> On the report of the + danger of his friend, who was persecuted by an ungrateful court, the + prince of Ionia assembled at Smyrna a fleet of three hundred vessels, with + an army of twenty-nine thousand men; sailed in the depth of winter, and + cast anchor at the mouth of the Hebrus. From thence, with a chosen band of + two thousand Turks, he marched along the banks of the river, and rescued + the empress, who was besieged in Demotica by the wild Bulgarians. At that + disastrous moment, the life or death of his beloved Cantacuzene was + concealed by his flight into Servia: but the grateful Irene, impatient to + behold her deliverer, invited him to enter the city, and accompanied her + message with a present of rich apparel and a hundred horses. By a peculiar + strain of delicacy, the Gentle Barbarian refused, in the absence of an + unfortunate friend, to visit his wife, or to taste the luxuries of the + palace; sustained in his tent the rigor of the winter; and rejected the + hospitable gift, that he might share the hardships of two thousand + companions, all as deserving as himself of that honor and distinction. + Necessity and revenge might justify his predatory excursions by sea and + land: he left nine thousand five hundred men for the guard of his fleet; + and persevered in the fruitless search of Cantacuzene, till his + embarkation was hastened by a fictitious letter, the severity of the + season, the clamors of his independent troops, and the weight of his spoil + and captives. In the prosecution of the civil war, the prince of Ionia + twice returned to Europe; joined his arms with those of the emperor; + besieged Thessalonica, and threatened Constantinople. Calumny might affix + some reproach on his imperfect aid, his hasty departure, and a bribe of + ten thousand crowns, which he accepted from the Byzantine court; but his + friend was satisfied; and the conduct of Amir is excused by the more + sacred duty of defending against the Latins his hereditary dominions. The + maritime power of the Turks had united the pope, the king of Cyprus, the + republic of Venice, and the order of St. John, in a laudable crusade; + their galleys invaded the coast of Ionia; and Amir was slain with an + arrow, in the attempt to wrest from the Rhodian knights the citadel of + Smyrna. <a href="#linkFnote-48" name="linkFnoteref-48" id="linkFnoteref-48">48</a> + Before his death, he generously recommended another ally of his own + nation; not more sincere or zealous than himself, but more able to afford + a prompt and powerful succor, by his situation along the Propontis and in + the front of Constantinople. By the prospect of a more advantageous + treaty, the Turkish prince of Bithynia was detached from his engagements + with Anne of Savoy; and the pride of Orchan dictated the most solemn + protestations, that if he could obtain the daughter of Cantacuzene, he + would invariably fulfil the duties of a subject and a son. Parental + tenderness was silenced by the voice of ambition: the Greek clergy + connived at the marriage of a Christian princess with a sectary of + Mahomet; and the father of Theodora describes, with shameful satisfaction, + the dishonor of the purple. <a href="#linkFnote-49" name="linkFnoteref-49" + id="linkFnoteref-49">49</a> A body of Turkish cavalry attended the + ambassadors, who disembarked from thirty vessels, before his camp of + Selybria. A stately pavilion was erected, in which the empress Irene + passed the night with her daughters. In the morning, Theodora ascended a + throne, which was surrounded with curtains of silk and gold: the troops + were under arms; but the emperor alone was on horseback. At a signal the + curtains were suddenly withdrawn to disclose the bride, or the victim, + encircled by kneeling eunuchs and hymeneal torches: the sound of flutes + and trumpets proclaimed the joyful event; and her pretended happiness was + the theme of the nuptial song, which was chanted by such poets as the age + could produce. Without the rites of the church, Theodora was delivered to + her barbarous lord: but it had been stipulated, that she should preserve + her religion in the harem of Bursa; and her father celebrates her charity + and devotion in this ambiguous situation. After his peaceful establishment + on the throne of Constantinople, the Greek emperor visited his Turkish + ally, who with four sons, by various wives, expected him at Scutari, on + the Asiatic shore. The two princes partook, with seeming cordiality, of + the pleasures of the banquet and the chase; and Theodora was permitted to + repass the Bosphorus, and to enjoy some days in the society of her mother. + But the friendship of Orchan was subservient to his religion and interest; + and in the Genoese war he joined without a blush the enemies of + Cantacuzene. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-47" id="linkFnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicephorus Gregoras has + expatiated with pleasure on this amiable character, (l. xii. 7, xiii. 4, + 10, xiv. 1, 9, xvi. 6.) Cantacuzene speaks with honor and esteem of his + ally, (l. iii. c. 56, 57, 63, 64, 66, 67, 68, 86, 89, 95, 96;) but he + seems ignorant of his own sentimental passion for the Turks, and + indirectly denies the possibility of such unnatural friendship, (l. iv. c. + 40.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-48" id="linkFnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ After the conquest of + Smyrna by the Latins, the defence of this fortress was imposed by Pope + Gregory XI. on the knights of Rhodes, (see Vertot, l. v.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-49" id="linkFnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ See Cantacuzenus, l. + iii. c. 95. Nicephorus Gregoras, who, for the light of Mount Thabor, + brands the emperor with the names of tyrant and Herod, excuses, rather + than blames, this Turkish marriage, and alleges the passion and power of + Orchan, eggutatoV, kai th dunamo? touV kat' auton hdh PersikouV (Turkish) + uperairwn SatrapaV, (l. xv. 5.) He afterwards celebrates his kingdom and + armies. See his reign in Cantemir, p. 24—30.] + </p> + <p> + In the treaty with the empress Anne, the Ottoman prince had inserted a + singular condition, that it should be lawful for him to sell his prisoners + at Constantinople, or transport them into Asia. A naked crowd of + Christians of both sexes and every age, of priests and monks, of matrons + and virgins, was exposed in the public market; the whip was frequently + used to quicken the charity of redemption; and the indigent Greeks + deplored the fate of their brethren, who were led away to the worst evils + of temporal and spiritual bondage <a href="#linkFnote-50" + name="linkFnoteref-50" id="linkFnoteref-50">50</a> Cantacuzene was reduced + to subscribe the same terms; and their execution must have been still more + pernicious to the empire: a body of ten thousand Turks had been detached + to the assistance of the empress Anne; but the entire forces of Orchan + were exerted in the service of his father. Yet these calamities were of a + transient nature; as soon as the storm had passed away, the fugitives + might return to their habitations; and at the conclusion of the civil and + foreign wars, Europe was completely evacuated by the Moslems of Asia. It + was in his last quarrel with his pupil that Cantacuzene inflicted the deep + and deadly wound, which could never be healed by his successors, and which + is poorly expiated by his theological dialogues against the prophet + Mahomet. Ignorant of their own history, the modern Turks confound their + first and their final passage of the Hellespont, <a href="#linkFnote-51" + name="linkFnoteref-51" id="linkFnoteref-51">51</a> and describe the son of + Orchan as a nocturnal robber, who, with eighty companions, explores by + stratagem a hostile and unknown shore. Soliman, at the head of ten + thousand horse, was transported in the vessels, and entertained as the + friend, of the Greek emperor. In the civil wars of Romania, he performed + some service and perpetrated more mischief; but the Chersonesus was + insensibly filled with a Turkish colony; and the Byzantine court solicited + in vain the restitution of the fortresses of Thrace. After some artful + delays between the Ottoman prince and his son, their ransom was valued at + sixty thousand crowns, and the first payment had been made when an + earthquake shook the walls and cities of the provinces; the dismantled + places were occupied by the Turks; and Gallipoli, the key of the + Hellespont, was rebuilt and repeopled by the policy of Soliman. The + abdication of Cantacuzene dissolved the feeble bands of domestic alliance; + and his last advice admonished his countrymen to decline a rash contest, + and to compare their own weakness with the numbers and valor, the + discipline and enthusiasm, of the Moslems. His prudent counsels were + despised by the headstrong vanity of youth, and soon justified by the + victories of the Ottomans. But as he practised in the field the exercise + of the <i>jerid</i>, Soliman was killed by a fall from his horse; and the + aged Orchan wept and expired on the tomb of his valiant son. <a + href="#linkFnote-511" name="linkFnoteref-511" id="linkFnoteref-511">511</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-50" id="linkFnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ The most lively and + concise picture of this captivity may be found in the history of Ducas, + (c. 8,) who fairly describes what Cantacuzene confesses with a guilty + blush!] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-51" id="linkFnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ In this passage, and the + first conquests in Europe, Cantemir (p. 27, &c.) gives a miserable + idea of his Turkish guides; nor am I much better satisfied with + Chalcondyles, (l. i. p. 12, &c.) They forget to consult the most + authentic record, the ivth book of Cantacuzene. I likewise regret the last + books, which are still manuscript, of Nicephorus Gregoras. * Note: Von + Hammer excuses the silence with which the Turkish historians pass over the + earlier intercourse of the Ottomans with the European continent, of which + he enumerates sixteen different occasions, as if they disdained those + peaceful incursions by which they gained no conquest, and established no + permanent footing on the Byzantine territory. Of the romantic account of + Soliman's first expedition, he says, "As yet the prose of history had not + asserted its right over the poetry of tradition." This defence would + scarcely be accepted as satisfactory by the historian of the Decline and + Fall.—M. (in Quarterly Review, vol. xlix. p. 293.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-511" id="linkFnote-511"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 511 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-511">return</a>)<br /> [ In the 75th year of + his age, the 35th of his reign. V. Hammer. M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkF2HCH0004" id="linkF2HCH0004"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXIV: Moguls, Ottoman Turks.—Part IV. + </h2> + <p> + But the Greeks had not time to rejoice in the death of their enemies; and + the Turkish cimeter was wielded with the same spirit by Amurath the First, + the son of Orchan, and the brother of Soliman. By the pale and fainting + light of the Byzantine annals, <a href="#linkFnote-52" + name="linkFnoteref-52" id="linkFnoteref-52">52</a> we can discern, that he + subdued without resistance the whole province of Romania or Thrace, from + the Hellespont to Mount Hæmus, and the verge of the capital; and that + Adrianople was chosen for the royal seat of his government and religion in + Europe. Constantinople, whose decline is almost coeval with her + foundation, had often, in the lapse of a thousand years, been assaulted by + the Barbarians of the East and West; but never till this fatal hour had + the Greeks been surrounded, both in Asia and Europe, by the arms of the + same hostile monarchy. Yet the prudence or generosity of Amurath postponed + for a while this easy conquest; and his pride was satisfied with the + frequent and humble attendance of the emperor John Palæologus and his four + sons, who followed at his summons the court and camp of the Ottoman + prince. He marched against the Sclavonian nations between the Danube and + the Adriatic, the Bulgarians, Servians, Bosnians, and Albanians; and these + warlike tribes, who had so often insulted the majesty of the empire, were + repeatedly broken by his destructive inroads. Their countries did not + abound either in gold or silver; nor were their rustic hamlets and + townships enriched by commerce or decorated by the arts of luxury. But the + natives of the soil have been distinguished in every age by their + hardiness of mind and body; and they were converted by a prudent + institution into the firmest and most faithful supporters of the Ottoman + greatness. <a href="#linkFnote-53" name="linkFnoteref-53" + id="linkFnoteref-53">53</a> The vizier of Amurath reminded his sovereign + that, according to the Mahometan law, he was entitled to a fifth part of + the spoil and captives; and that the duty might easily be levied, if + vigilant officers were stationed in Gallipoli, to watch the passage, and + to select for his use the stoutest and most beautiful of the Christian + youth. The advice was followed: the edict was proclaimed; many thousands + of the European captives were educated in religion and arms; and the new + militia was consecrated and named by a celebrated dervis. Standing in the + front of their ranks, he stretched the sleeve of his gown over the head of + the foremost soldier, and his blessing was delivered in these words: "Let + them be called Janizaries, (<i>Yengi cheri</i>, or new soldiers;) may + their countenance be ever bright! their hand victorious! their sword keen! + may their spear always hang over the heads of their enemies! and + wheresoever they go, may they return with a <i>white face!</i>" <a + href="#linkFnote-54" name="linkFnoteref-54" id="linkFnoteref-54">54</a> <a + href="#linkFnote-541" name="linkFnoteref-541" id="linkFnoteref-541">541</a> + Such was the origin of these haughty troops, the terror of the nations, + and sometimes of the sultans themselves. Their valor has declined, their + discipline is relaxed, and their tumultuary array is incapable of + contending with the order and weapons of modern tactics; but at the time + of their institution, they possessed a decisive superiority in war; since + a regular body of infantry, in constant exercise and pay, was not + maintained by any of the princes of Christendom. The Janizaries fought + with the zeal of proselytes against their <i>idolatrous</i> countrymen; + and in the battle of Cossova, the league and independence of the + Sclavonian tribes was finally crushed. As the conqueror walked over the + field, he observed that the greatest part of the slain consisted of + beardless youths; and listened to the flattering reply of his vizier, that + age and wisdom would have taught them not to oppose his irresistible arms. + But the sword of his Janizaries could not defend him from the dagger of + despair; a Servian soldier started from the crowd of dead bodies, and + Amurath was pierced in the belly with a mortal wound. <a + href="#linkFnote-542" name="linkFnoteref-542" id="linkFnoteref-542">542</a> + The grandson of Othman was mild in his temper, modest in his apparel, and + a lover of learning and virtue; but the Moslems were scandalized at his + absence from public worship; and he was corrected by the firmness of the + mufti, who dared to reject his testimony in a civil cause: a mixture of + servitude and freedom not unfrequent in Oriental history. <a + href="#linkFnote-55" name="linkFnoteref-55" id="linkFnoteref-55">55</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-52" id="linkFnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ After the conclusion of + Cantacuzene and Gregoras, there follows a dark interval of a hundred + years. George Phranza, Michael Ducas, and Laonicus Chalcondyles, all three + wrote after the taking of Constantinople.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-53" id="linkFnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ See Cantemir, p. 37—41, + with his own large and curious annotations.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-54" id="linkFnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ <i>White</i> and <i>black</i> + face are common and proverbial expressions of praise and reproach in the + Turkish language. Hic <i>niger</i> est, hunc tu Romane caveto, was + likewise a Latin sentence.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-541" id="linkFnote-541"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 541 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-541">return</a>)<br /> [ According to Von + Hammer. vol. i. p. 90, Gibbon and the European writers assign too late a + date to this enrolment of the Janizaries. It took place not in the reign + of Amurath, but in that of his predecessor Orchan.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-542" id="linkFnote-542"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 542 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-542">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducas has related this + as a deliberate act of self-devotion on the part of a Servian noble who + pretended to desert, and stabbed Amurath during a conference which he had + requested. The Italian translator of Ducas, published by Bekker in the new + edition of the Byzantines, has still further heightened the romance. See + likewise in Von Hammer (Osmanische Geschichte, vol. i. p. 138) the popular + Servian account, which resembles that of Ducas, and may have been the + source of that of his Italian translator. The Turkish account agrees more + nearly with Gibbon; but the Servian, (Milosch Kohilovisch) while he lay + among the heap of the dead, pretended to have some secret to impart to + Amurath, and stabbed him while he leaned over to listen.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-55" id="linkFnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ See the life and death + of Morad, or Amurath I., in Cantemir, (p 33—45,) the first book of + Chalcondyles, and the Annales Turcici of Leunclavius. According to another + story, the sultan was stabbed by a Croat in his tent; and this accident + was alleged to Busbequius (Epist i. p. 98) as an excuse for the unworthy + precaution of pinioning, as if were, between two attendants, an + ambassador's arms, when he is introduced to the royal presence.] + </p> + <p> + The character of Bajazet, the son and successor of Amurath, is strongly + expressed in his surname of <i>Ilderim</i>, or the lightning; and he might + glory in an epithet, which was drawn from the fiery energy of his soul and + the rapidity of his destructive march. In the fourteen years of his reign, + <a href="#linkFnote-56" name="linkFnoteref-56" id="linkFnoteref-56">56</a> + he incessantly moved at the head of his armies, from Boursa to Adrianople, + from the Danube to the Euphrates; and, though he strenuously labored for + the propagation of the law, he invaded, with impartial ambition, the + Christian and Mahometan princes of Europe and Asia. From Angora to Amasia + and Erzeroum, the northern regions of Anatolia were reduced to his + obedience: he stripped of their hereditary possessions his brother emirs + of Ghermian and Caramania, of Aidin and Sarukhan; and after the conquest + of Iconium the ancient kingdom of the Seljukians again revived in the + Ottoman dynasty. Nor were the conquests of Bajazet less rapid or important + in Europe. No sooner had he imposed a regular form of servitude on the + Servians and Bulgarians, than he passed the Danube to seek new enemies and + new subjects in the heart of Moldavia. <a href="#linkFnote-57" + name="linkFnoteref-57" id="linkFnoteref-57">57</a> Whatever yet adhered to + the Greek empire in Thrace, Macedonia, and Thessaly, acknowledged a + Turkish master: an obsequious bishop led him through the gates of + Thermopylæ into Greece; and we may observe, as a singular fact, that the + widow of a Spanish chief, who possessed the ancient seat of the oracle of + Delphi, deserved his favor by the sacrifice of a beauteous daughter. The + Turkish communication between Europe and Asia had been dangerous and + doubtful, till he stationed at Gallipoli a fleet of galleys, to command + the Hellespont and intercept the Latin succors of Constantinople. While + the monarch indulged his passions in a boundless range of injustice and + cruelty, he imposed on his soldiers the most rigid laws of modesty and + abstinence; and the harvest was peaceably reaped and sold within the + precincts of his camp. Provoked by the loose and corrupt administration of + justice, he collected in a house the judges and lawyers of his dominions, + who expected that in a few moments the fire would be kindled to reduce + them to ashes. His ministers trembled in silence: but an Æthiopian buffoon + presumed to insinuate the true cause of the evil; and future venality was + left without excuse, by annexing an adequate salary to the office of + cadhi. <a href="#linkFnote-58" name="linkFnoteref-58" id="linkFnoteref-58">58</a> + The humble title of emir was no longer suitable to the Ottoman greatness; + and Bajazet condescended to accept a patent of sultan from the caliphs who + served in Egypt under the yoke of the Mamalukes: <a href="#linkFnote-59" + name="linkFnoteref-59" id="linkFnoteref-59">59</a> a last and frivolous + homage that was yielded by force to opinion; by the Turkish conquerors to + the house of Abbas and the successors of the Arabian prophet. The ambition + of the sultan was inflamed by the obligation of deserving this august + title; and he turned his arms against the kingdom of Hungary, the + perpetual theatre of the Turkish victories and defeats. Sigismond, the + Hungarian king, was the son and brother of the emperors of the West: his + cause was that of Europe and the church; and, on the report of his danger, + the bravest knights of France and Germany were eager to march under his + standard and that of the cross. In the battle of Nicopolis, Bajazet + defeated a confederate army of a hundred thousand Christians, who had + proudly boasted, that if the sky should fall, they could uphold it on + their lances. The far greater part were slain or driven into the Danube; + and Sigismond, escaping to Constantinople by the river and the Black Sea, + returned after a long circuit to his exhausted kingdom. <a + href="#linkFnote-60" name="linkFnoteref-60" id="linkFnoteref-60">60</a> In + the pride of victory, Bajazet threatened that he would besiege Buda; that + he would subdue the adjacent countries of Germany and Italy, and that he + would feed his horse with a bushel of oats on the altar of St. Peter at + Rome. His progress was checked, not by the miraculous interposition of the + apostle, not by a crusade of the Christian powers, but by a long and + painful fit of the gout. The disorders of the moral, are sometimes + corrected by those of the physical, world; and an acrimonious humor + falling on a single fibre of one man, may prevent or suspend the misery of + nations. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-56" id="linkFnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ The reign of Bajazet I., + or Ilderim Bayazid, is contained in Cantemir, (p. 46,) the iid book of + Chalcondyles, and the Annales Turcici. The surname of Ilderim, or + lightning, is an example, that the conquerors and poets of every age have + <i>felt</i> the truth of a system which derives the sublime from the + principle of terror.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-57" id="linkFnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantemir, who celebrates + the victories of the great Stephen over the Turks, (p. 47,) had composed + the ancient and modern state of his principality of Moldavia, which has + been long promised, and is still unpublished.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-58" id="linkFnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ Leunclav. Annal. + Turcici, p. 318, 319. The venality of the cadhis has long been an object + of scandal and satire; and if we distrust the observations of our + travellers, we may consult the feeling of the Turks themselves, + (D'Herbelot, Bibliot. Orientale, p. 216, 217, 229, 230.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-59" id="linkFnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ The fact, which is + attested by the Arabic history of Ben Schounah, a contemporary Syrian, (De + Guignes Hist. des Huns. tom. iv. p. 336.) destroys the testimony of Saad + Effendi and Cantemir, (p. 14, 15,) of the election of Othman to the + dignity of sultan.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-60" id="linkFnote-60"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 60 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-60">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Decades Rerum + Hungaricarum (Dec. iii. l. ii. p. 379) of Bonfinius, an Italian, who, in + the xvth century, was invited into Hungary to compose an eloquent history + of that kingdom. Yet, if it be extant and accessible, I should give the + preference to some homely chronicle of the time and country.] + </p> + <p> + Such is the general idea of the Hungarian war; but the disastrous + adventure of the French has procured us some memorials which illustrate + the victory and character of Bajazet. <a href="#linkFnote-61" + name="linkFnoteref-61" id="linkFnoteref-61">61</a> The duke of Burgundy, + sovereign of Flanders, and uncle of Charles the Sixth, yielded to the + ardor of his son, John count of Nevers; and the fearless youth was + accompanied by four princes, his <i>cousins</i>, and those of the French + monarch. Their inexperience was guided by the Sire de Coucy, one of the + best and oldest captain of Christendom; <a href="#linkFnote-62" + name="linkFnoteref-62" id="linkFnoteref-62">62</a> but the constable, + admiral, and marshal of France <a href="#linkFnote-63" + name="linkFnoteref-63" id="linkFnoteref-63">63</a> commanded an army which + did not exceed the number of a thousand knights and squires. <a + href="#linkFnote-631" name="linkFnoteref-631" id="linkFnoteref-631">631</a> + These splendid names were the source of presumption and the bane of + discipline. So many might aspire to command, that none were willing to + obey; their national spirit despised both their enemies and their allies; + and in the persuasion that Bajazet <i>would</i> fly, or <i>must</i> fall, + they began to compute how soon they should visit Constantinople and + deliver the holy sepulchre. When their scouts announced the approach of + the Turks, the gay and thoughtless youths were at table, already heated + with wine; they instantly clasped their armor, mounted their horses, rode + full speed to the vanguard, and resented as an affront the advice of + Sigismond, which would have deprived them of the right and honor of the + foremost attack. The battle of Nicopolis would not have been lost, if the + French would have obeyed the prudence of the Hungarians; but it might have + been gloriously won, had the Hungarians imitated the valor of the French. + They dispersed the first line, consisting of the troops of Asia; forced a + rampart of stakes, which had been planted against the cavalry; broke, + after a bloody conflict, the Janizaries themselves; and were at length + overwhelmed by the numerous squadrons that issued from the woods, and + charged on all sides this handful of intrepid warriors. In the speed and + secrecy of his march, in the order and evolutions of the battle, his + enemies felt and admired the military talents of Bajazet. They accuse his + cruelty in the use of victory. After reserving the count of Nevers, and + four-and-twenty lords, <a href="#linkFnote-632" name="linkFnoteref-632" + id="linkFnoteref-632">632</a> whose birth and riches were attested by his + Latin interpreters, the remainder of the French captives, who had survived + the slaughter of the day, were led before his throne; and, as they refused + to abjure their faith, were successively beheaded in his presence. The + sultan was exasperated by the loss of his bravest Janizaries; and if it be + true, that, on the eve of the engagement, the French had massacred their + Turkish prisoners, <a href="#linkFnote-64" name="linkFnoteref-64" + id="linkFnoteref-64">64</a> they might impute to themselves the + consequences of a just retaliation. <a href="#linkFnote-641" + name="linkFnoteref-641" id="linkFnoteref-641">641</a> A knight, whose life + had been spared, was permitted to return to Paris, that he might relate + the deplorable tale, and solicit the ransom of the noble captives. In the + mean while, the count of Nevers, with the princes and barons of France, + were dragged along in the marches of the Turkish camp, exposed as a + grateful trophy to the Moslems of Europe and Asia, and strictly confined + at Boursa, as often as Bajazet resided in his capital. The sultan was + pressed each day to expiate with their blood the blood of his martyrs; but + he had pronounced that they should live, and either for mercy or + destruction his word was irrevocable. He was assured of their value and + importance by the return of the messenger, and the gifts and intercessions + of the kings of France and of Cyprus. Lusignan presented him with a gold + saltcellar of curious workmanship, and of the price of ten thousand + ducats; and Charles the Sixth despatched by the way of Hungary a cast of + Norwegian hawks, and six horse-loads of scarlet cloth, of fine linen of + Rheims, and of Arras tapestry, representing the battles of the great + Alexander. After much delay, the effect of distance rather than of art, + Bajazet agreed to accept a ransom of two hundred thousand ducats for the + count of Nevers and the surviving princes and barons: the marshal + Boucicault, a famous warrior, was of the number of the fortunate; but the + admiral of France had been slain in battle; and the constable, with the + Sire de Coucy, died in the prison of Boursa. This heavy demand, which was + doubled by incidental costs, fell chiefly on the duke of Burgundy, or + rather on his Flemish subjects, who were bound by the feudal laws to + contribute for the knighthood and captivity of the eldest son of their + lord. For the faithful discharge of the debt, some merchants of Genoa gave + security to the amount of five times the sum; a lesson to those warlike + times, that commerce and credit are the links of the society of nations. + It had been stipulated in the treaty, that the French captives should + swear never to bear arms against the person of their conqueror; but the + ungenerous restraint was abolished by Bajazet himself. "I despise," said + he to the heir of Burgundy, "thy oaths and thy arms. Thou art young, and + mayest be ambitious of effacing the disgrace or misfortune of thy first + chivalry. Assemble thy powers, proclaim thy design, and be assured that + Bajazet will rejoice to meet thee a second time in a field of battle." + Before their departure, they were indulged in the freedom and hospitality + of the court of Boursa. The French princes admired the magnificence of the + Ottoman, whose hunting and hawking equipage was composed of seven thousand + huntsmen and seven thousand falconers. <a href="#linkFnote-65" + name="linkFnoteref-65" id="linkFnoteref-65">65</a> In their presence, and + at his command, the belly of one of his chamberlains was cut open, on a + complaint against him for drinking the goat's milk of a poor woman. The + strangers were astonished by this act of justice; but it was the justice + of a sultan who disdains to balance the weight of evidence, or to measure + the degrees of guilt. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-61" id="linkFnote-61"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 61 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-61">return</a>)<br /> [ I should not complain of + the labor of this work, if my materials were always derived from such + books as the chronicle of honest Froissard, (vol. iv. c. 67, 72, 74, 79—83, + 85, 87, 89,) who read little, inquired much, and believed all. The + original Mémoires of the Maréchal de Boucicault (Partie i. c. 22—28) + add some facts, but they are dry and deficient, if compared with the + pleasant garrulity of Froissard.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-62" id="linkFnote-62"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 62 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-62">return</a>)<br /> [ An accurate Memoir on + the Life of Enguerrand VII., Sire de Coucy, has been given by the Baron de + Zurlauben, (Hist. de l'Académie des Inscriptions, tom. xxv.) His rank and + possessions were equally considerable in France and England; and, in 1375, + he led an army of adventurers into Switzerland, to recover a large + patrimony which he claimed in right of his grandmother, the daughter of + the emperor Albert I. of Austria, (Sinner, Voyage dans la Suisse + Occidentale, tom. i. p. 118—124.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-63" id="linkFnote-63"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 63 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-63">return</a>)<br /> [ That military office, so + respectable at present, was still more conspicuous when it was divided + between two persons, (Daniel, Hist. de la Milice Françoise, tom. ii. p. + 5.) One of these, the marshal of the crusade, was the famous Boucicault, + who afterwards defended Constantinople, governed Genoa, invaded the coast + of Asia, and died in the field of Azincour.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-631" id="linkFnote-631"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 631 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-631">return</a>)<br /> [ Daru, Hist. de Venice, + vol. ii. p. 104, makes the whole French army amount to 10,000 men, of whom + 1000 were knights. The curious volume of Schiltberger, a German of Munich, + who was taken prisoner in the battle, (edit. Munich, 1813,) and which V. + Hammer receives as authentic, gives the whole number at 6000. See + Schiltberger. Reise in dem Orient. and V. Hammer, Fnote, p. 610.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-632" id="linkFnote-632"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 632 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-632">return</a>)<br /> [ According to + Schiltberger there were only twelve French lords granted to the prayer of + the "duke of Burgundy," and "Herr Stephan Synther, and Johann von Bodem." + Schiltberger, p. 13.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-64" id="linkFnote-64"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 64 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-64">return</a>)<br /> [ For this odious fact, + the Abbé de Vertot quotes the Hist. Anonyme de St. Denys, l. xvi. c. 10, + 11. (Ordre de Malthe, tom. ii. p. 310.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-641" id="linkFnote-641"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 641 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-641">return</a>)<br /> [ See Schiltberger's + very graphic account of the massacre. He was led out to be slaughtered in + cold blood with the rest f the Christian prisoners, amounting to 10,000. + He was spared at the intercession of the son of Bajazet, with a few + others, on account of their extreme youth. No one under 20 years of age + was put to death. The "duke of Burgundy" was obliged to be a spectator of + this butchery which lasted from early in the morning till four o'clock, P. + M. It ceased only at the supplication of the leaders of Bajazet's army. + Schiltberger, p. 14.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-65" id="linkFnote-65"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 65 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-65">return</a>)<br /> [ Sherefeddin Ali (Hist. + de Timour Bec, l. v. c. 13) allows Bajazet a round number of 12,000 + officers and servants of the chase. A part of his spoils was afterwards + displayed in a hunting-match of Timour, l. hounds with satin housings; 2. + leopards with collars set with jewels; 3. Grecian greyhounds; and 4, dogs + from Europe, as strong as African lions, (idem, l. vi. c. 15.) Bajazet was + particularly fond of flying his hawks at cranes, (Chalcondyles, l. ii. p. + 85.)] + </p> + <p> + After his enfranchisement from an oppressive guardian, John Palæologus + remained thirty-six years, the helpless, and, as it should seem, the + careless spectator of the public ruin. <a href="#linkFnote-66" + name="linkFnoteref-66" id="linkFnoteref-66">66</a> Love, or rather lust, + was his only vigorous passion; and in the embraces of the wives and + virgins of the city, the Turkish slave forgot the dishonor of the emperor + of the <i>Romans</i> Andronicus, his eldest son, had formed, at + Adrianople, an intimate and guilty friendship with Sauzes, the son of + Amurath; and the two youths conspired against the authority and lives of + their parents. The presence of Amurath in Europe soon discovered and + dissipated their rash counsels; and, after depriving Sauzes of his sight, + the Ottoman threatened his vassal with the treatment of an accomplice and + an enemy, unless he inflicted a similar punishment on his own son. + Palæologus trembled and obeyed; and a cruel precaution involved in the + same sentence the childhood and innocence of John, the son of the + criminal. But the operation was so mildly, or so unskilfully, performed, + that the one retained the sight of an eye, and the other was afflicted + only with the infirmity of squinting. Thus excluded from the succession, + the two princes were confined in the tower of Anema; and the piety of + Manuel, the second son of the reigning monarch, was rewarded with the gift + of the Imperial crown. But at the end of two years, the turbulence of the + Latins and the levity of the Greeks, produced a revolution; <a + href="#linkFnote-661" name="linkFnoteref-661" id="linkFnoteref-661">661</a> + and the two emperors were buried in the tower from whence the two + prisoners were exalted to the throne. Another period of two years afforded + Palæologus and Manuel the means of escape: it was contrived by the magic + or subtlety of a monk, who was alternately named the angel or the devil: + they fled to Scutari; their adherents armed in their cause; and the two + Byzantine factions displayed the ambition and animosity with which Cæsar + and Pompey had disputed the empire of the world. The Roman world was now + contracted to a corner of Thrace, between the Propontis and the Black Sea, + about fifty miles in length and thirty in breadth; a space of ground not + more extensive than the lesser principalities of Germany or Italy, if the + remains of Constantinople had not still represented the wealth and + populousness of a kingdom. To restore the public peace, it was found + necessary to divide this fragment of the empire; and while Palæologus and + Manuel were left in possession of the capital, almost all that lay without + the walls was ceded to the blind princes, who fixed their residence at + Rhodosto and Selybria. In the tranquil slumber of royalty, the passions of + John Palæologus survived his reason and his strength: he deprived his + favorite and heir of a blooming princess of Trebizond; and while the + feeble emperor labored to consummate his nuptials, Manuel, with a hundred + of the noblest Greeks, was sent on a peremptory summons to the Ottoman <i>porte</i>. + They served with honor in the wars of Bajazet; but a plan of fortifying + Constantinople excited his jealousy: he threatened their lives; the new + works were instantly demolished; and we shall bestow a praise, perhaps + above the merit of Palæologus, if we impute this last humiliation as the + cause of his death. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-66" id="linkFnote-66"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 66 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-66">return</a>)<br /> [ For the reigns of John + Palæologus and his son Manuel, from 1354 to 1402, see Ducas, c. 9—15, + Phranza, l. i. c. 16—21, and the ist and iid books of Chalcondyles, + whose proper subject is drowned in a sea of episode.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-661" id="linkFnote-661"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 661 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-661">return</a>)<br /> [ According to Von + Hammer it was the power of Bajazet, vol. i. p. 218.] + </p> + <p> + The earliest intelligence of that event was communicated to Manuel, who + escaped with speed and secrecy from the palace of Boursa to the Byzantine + throne. Bajazet affected a proud indifference at the loss of this valuable + pledge; and while he pursued his conquests in Europe and Asia, he left the + emperor to struggle with his blind cousin John of Selybria, who, in eight + years of civil war, asserted his right of primogeniture. At length, the + ambition of the victorious sultan pointed to the conquest of + Constantinople; but he listened to the advice of his vizier, who + represented that such an enterprise might unite the powers of Christendom + in a second and more formidable crusade. His epistle to the emperor was + conceived in these words: "By the divine clemency, our invincible cimeter + has reduced to our obedience almost all Asia, with many and large + countries in Europe, excepting only the city of Constantinople; for beyond + the walls thou hast nothing left. Resign that city; stipulate thy reward; + or tremble, for thyself and thy unhappy people, at the consequences of a + rash refusal." But his ambassadors were instructed to soften their tone, + and to propose a treaty, which was subscribed with submission and + gratitude. A truce of ten years was purchased by an annual tribute of + thirty thousand crowns of gold; the Greeks deplored the public toleration + of the law of Mahomet, and Bajazet enjoyed the glory of establishing a + Turkish cadhi, and founding a royal mosque in the metropolis of the + Eastern church. <a href="#linkFnote-67" name="linkFnoteref-67" + id="linkFnoteref-67">67</a> Yet this truce was soon violated by the + restless sultan: in the cause of the prince of Selybria, the lawful + emperor, an army of Ottomans again threatened Constantinople; and the + distress of Manuel implored the protection of the king of France. His + plaintive embassy obtained much pity and some relief; and the conduct of + the succor was intrusted to the marshal Boucicault, <a href="#linkFnote-68" + name="linkFnoteref-68" id="linkFnoteref-68">68</a> whose religious + chivalry was inflamed by the desire of revenging his captivity on the + infidels. He sailed with four ships of war, from Aiguesmortes to the + Hellespont; forced the passage, which was guarded by seventeen Turkish + galleys; landed at Constantinople a supply of six hundred men-at-arms and + sixteen hundred archers; and reviewed them in the adjacent plain, without + condescending to number or array the multitude of Greeks. By his presence, + the blockade was raised both by sea and land; the flying squadrons of + Bajazet were driven to a more respectful distance; and several castles in + Europe and Asia were stormed by the emperor and the marshal, who fought + with equal valor by each other's side. But the Ottomans soon returned with + an increase of numbers; and the intrepid Boucicault, after a year's + struggle, resolved to evacuate a country which could no longer afford + either pay or provisions for his soldiers. The marshal offered to conduct + Manuel to the French court, where he might solicit in person a supply of + men and money; and advised, in the mean while, that, to extinguish all + domestic discord, he should leave his blind competitor on the throne. The + proposal was embraced: the prince of Selybria was introduced to the + capital; and such was the public misery, that the lot of the exile seemed + more fortunate than that of the sovereign. Instead of applauding the + success of his vassal, the Turkish sultan claimed the city as his own; and + on the refusal of the emperor John, Constantinople was more closely + pressed by the calamities of war and famine. Against such an enemy prayers + and resistance were alike unavailing; and the savage would have devoured + his prey, if, in the fatal moment, he had not been overthrown by another + savage stronger than himself. By the victory of Timour or Tamerlane, the + fall of Constantinople was delayed about fifty years; and this important, + though accidental, service may justly introduce the life and character of + the Mogul conqueror. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-67" id="linkFnote-67"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 67 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-67">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantemir, p. 50—53. + Of the Greeks, Ducas alone (c. 13, 15) acknowledges the Turkish cadhi at + Constantinople. Yet even Ducas dissembles the mosque.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkFnote-68" id="linkFnote-68"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 68 (<a href="#linkFnoteref-68">return</a>)<br /> [ Mémoires du bon Messire + Jean le Maingre, dit <i>Boucicault</i>, Maréchal de France, partie ire c. + 30, 35.] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> =================== <a name="linkG2HCH0001" id="linkG2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + Chapter LXV: Elevation Of Timour Or Tamerlane, And His Death.—Part + I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Elevation Of Timour Or Tamerlane To The Throne Of + Samarcand.—His Conquests In Persia, Georgia, Tartary + Russia, India, Syria, And Anatolia.—His Turkish War.— + Defeat And Captivity Of Bajazet.—Death Of Timour.—Civil + War Of The Sons Of Bajazet.—Restoration Of The Turkish + Monarchy By Mahomet The First.—Siege Of Constantinople By + Amurath The Second. +</pre> + <p> + The conquest and monarchy of the world was the first object of the + ambition of Timour. To live in the memory and esteem of future ages was + the second wish of his magnanimous spirit. All the civil and military + transactions of his reign were diligently recorded in the journals of his + secretaries: <a href="#linkGnote-1" name="linkGnoteref-1" + id="linkGnoteref-1">1</a> the authentic narrative was revised by the + persons best informed of each particular transaction; and it is believed + in the empire and family of Timour, that the monarch himself composed the + <i>commentaries</i> <a href="#linkGnote-2" name="linkGnoteref-2" + id="linkGnoteref-2">2</a> of his life, and the <i>institutions</i> <a + href="#linkGnote-3" name="linkGnoteref-3" id="linkGnoteref-3">3</a> of his + government. <a href="#linkGnote-4" name="linkGnoteref-4" + id="linkGnoteref-4">4</a> But these cares were ineffectual for the + preservation of his fame, and these precious memorials in the Mogul or + Persian language were concealed from the world, or, at least, from the + knowledge of Europe. The nations which he vanquished exercised a base and + impotent revenge; and ignorance has long repeated the tale of calumny, <a + href="#linkGnote-5" name="linkGnoteref-5" id="linkGnoteref-5">5</a> which + had disfigured the birth and character, the person, and even the name, of + <i>Tamerlane</i>. <a href="#linkGnote-6" name="linkGnoteref-6" + id="linkGnoteref-6">6</a> Yet his real merit would be enhanced, rather + than debased, by the elevation of a peasant to the throne of Asia; nor can + his lameness be a theme of reproach, unless he had the weakness to blush + at a natural, or perhaps an honorable, infirmity. <a href="#linkGnote-606" + name="linkGnoteref-606" id="linkGnoteref-606">606</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-1" id="linkGnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ These journals were + communicated to Sherefeddin, or Cherefeddin Ali, a native of Yezd, who + composed in the Persian language a history of Timour Beg, which has been + translated into French by M. Petit de la Croix, (Paris, 1722, in 4 vols. + 12 mo.,) and has always been my faithful guide. His geography and + chronology are wonderfully accurate; and he may be trusted for public + facts, though he servilely praises the virtue and fortune of the hero. + Timour's attention to procure intelligence from his own and foreign + countries may be seen in the Institutions, p. 215, 217, 349, 351.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-2" id="linkGnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ These Commentaries are yet + unknown in Europe: but Mr. White gives some hope that they may be imported + and translated by his friend Major Davy, who had read in the East this + "minute and faithful narrative of an interesting and eventful period." * + Note: The manuscript of Major Davy has been translated by Major Stewart, + and published by the Oriental Translation Committee of London. It contains + the life of Timour, from his birth to his forty-first year; but the last + thirty years of western war and conquest are wanting. Major Stewart + intimates that two manuscripts exist in this country containing the whole + work, but excuses himself, on account of his age, from undertaking the + laborious task of completing the translation. It is to be hoped that the + European public will be soon enabled to judge of the value and + authenticity of the Commentaries of the Cæsar of the East. Major Stewart's + work commences with the Book of Dreams and Omens—a wild, but + characteristic, chronicle of Visions and Sortes Koranicæ. Strange that a + life of Timour should awaken a reminiscence of the diary of Archbishop + Laud! The early dawn and the gradual expression of his not less splendid + but more real visions of ambition are touched with the simplicity of truth + and nature. But we long to escape from the petty feuds of the pastoral + chieftain, to the triumphs and the legislation of the conqueror of the + world.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-3" id="linkGnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ I am ignorant whether the + original institution, in the Turki or Mogul language, be still extant. The + Persic version, with an English translation, and most valuable index, was + published (Oxford, 1783, in 4to.) by the joint labors of Major Davy and + Mr. White, the Arabic professor. This work has been since translated from + the Persic into French, (Paris, 1787,) by M. Langlès, a learned + Orientalist, who has added the life of Timour, and many curious Gnotes.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-4" id="linkGnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ Shaw Allum, the present + Mogul, reads, values, but cannot imitate, the institutions of his great + ancestor. The English translator relies on their internal evidence; but if + any suspicions should arise of fraud and fiction, they will not be + dispelled by Major Davy's letter. The Orientals have never cultivated the + art of criticism; the patronage of a prince, less honorable, perhaps, is + not less lucrative than that of a bookseller; nor can it be deemed + incredible that a Persian, the <i>real</i> author, should renounce the + credit, to raise the value and price, of the work.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-5" id="linkGnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ The original of the tale + is found in the following work, which is much esteemed for its florid + elegance of style: <i>Ahmedis Arabsiad</i> (Ahmed Ebn Arabshah) <i>Vitæ et + Rerum gestarum Timuri. Arabice et Latine. Edidit Samuel Henricus Manger. + Franequer</i>, 1767, 2 tom. in 4to. This Syrian author is ever a + malicious, and often an ignorant enemy: the very titles of his chapters + are injurious; as how the wicked, as how the impious, as how the viper, + &c. The copious article of Timur, in Bibliothèque Orientale, is of a + mixed nature, as D'Herbelot indifferently draws his materials (p. 877—888) + from Khondemir Ebn Schounah, and the Lebtarikh.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-6" id="linkGnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ <i>Demir</i> or <i>Timour</i> + signifies in the Turkish language, Iron; and it is the appellation of a + lord or prince. By the change of a letter or accent, it is changed into <i>Lenc</i>, + or Lame; and a European corruption confounds the two words in the name of + Tamerlane. * Note: According to the memoirs he was so called by a Shaikh, + who, when visited by his mother on his birth, was reading the verse of the + Koran, 'Are you sure that he who dwelleth in heaven will not cause the + earth to swallow you up, and behold <i>it shall shake</i>, Tamûrn." The + Shaikh then stopped and said, "We have named your son <i>Timûr</i>," p. + 21.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-606" id="linkGnote-606"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 606 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-606">return</a>)<br /> [ He was lamed by a + wound at the siege of the capital of Sistan. Sherefeddin, lib. iii. c. 17. + p. 136. See Von Hammer, vol. i. p. 260.—M.] + </p> + <p> + In the eyes of the Moguls, who held the indefeasible succession of the + house of Zingis, he was doubtless a rebel subject; yet he sprang from the + noble tribe of Berlass: his fifth ancestor, Carashar Nevian, had been the + vizier <a href="#linkGnote-607" name="linkGnoteref-607" + id="linkGnoteref-607">607</a> of Zagatai, in his new realm of Transoxiana; + and in the ascent of some generations, the branch of Timour is confounded, + at least by the females, <a href="#linkGnote-7" name="linkGnoteref-7" + id="linkGnoteref-7">7</a> with the Imperial stem. <a href="#linkGnote-8" + name="linkGnoteref-8" id="linkGnoteref-8">8</a> He was born forty miles to + the south of Samarcand in the village of Sebzar, in the fruitful territory + of Cash, of which his fathers were the hereditary chiefs, as well as of a + toman of ten thousand horse. <a href="#linkGnote-9" name="linkGnoteref-9" + id="linkGnoteref-9">9</a> His birth <a href="#linkGnote-10" + name="linkGnoteref-10" id="linkGnoteref-10">10</a> was cast on one of + those periods of anarchy, which announce the fall of the Asiatic + dynasties, and open a new field to adventurous ambition. The khans of + Zagatai were extinct; the emirs aspired to independence; and their + domestic feuds could only be suspended by the conquest and tyranny of the + khans of Kashgar, who, with an army of Getes or Calmucks, <a + href="#linkGnote-11" name="linkGnoteref-11" id="linkGnoteref-11">11</a> + invaded the Transoxian kingdom. From the twelfth year of his age, Timour + had entered the field of action; in the twenty-fifth <a + href="#linkGnote-111" name="linkGnoteref-111" id="linkGnoteref-111">111</a> + he stood forth as the deliverer of his country; and the eyes and wishes of + the people were turned towards a hero who suffered in their cause. The + chiefs of the law and of the army had pledged their salvation to support + him with their lives and fortunes; but in the hour of danger they were + silent and afraid; and, after waiting seven days on the hills of + Samarcand, he retreated to the desert with only sixty horsemen. The + fugitives were overtaken by a thousand Getes, whom he repulsed with + incredible slaughter, and his enemies were forced to exclaim, "Timour is a + wonderful man: fortune and the divine favor are with him." But in this + bloody action his own followers were reduced to ten, a number which was + soon diminished by the desertion of three Carizmians. <a + href="#linkGnote-112" name="linkGnoteref-112" id="linkGnoteref-112">112</a> + He wandered in the desert with his wife, seven companions, and four + horses; and sixty-two days was he plunged in a loathsome dungeon, from + whence he escaped by his own courage and the remorse of the oppressor. + After swimming the broad and rapid steam of the Jihoon, or Oxus, he led, + during some months, the life of a vagrant and outlaw, on the borders of + the adjacent states. But his fame shone brighter in adversity; he learned + to distinguish the friends of his person, the associates of his fortune, + and to apply the various characters of men for their advantage, and, above + all, for his own. On his return to his native country, Timour was + successively joined by the parties of his confederates, who anxiously + sought him in the desert; nor can I refuse to describe, in his pathetic + simplicity, one of their fortunate encounters. He presented himself as a + guide to three chiefs, who were at the head of seventy horse. "When their + eyes fell upon me," says Timour, "they were overwhelmed with joy; and they + alighted from their horses; and they came and kneeled; and they kissed my + stirrup. I also came down from my horse, and took each of them in my arms. + And I put my turban on the head of the first chief; and my girdle, rich in + jewels and wrought with gold, I bound on the loins of the second; and the + third I clothed in my own coat. And they wept, and I wept also; and the + hour of prayer was arrived, and we prayed. And we mounted our horses, and + came to my dwelling; and I collected my people, and made a feast." His + trusty bands were soon increased by the bravest of the tribes; he led them + against a superior foe; and, after some vicissitudes of war the Getes were + finally driven from the kingdom of Transoxiana. He had done much for his + own glory; but much remained to be done, much art to be exerted, and some + blood to be spilt, before he could teach his equals to obey him as their + master. The birth and power of emir Houssein compelled him to accept a + vicious and unworthy colleague, whose sister was the best beloved of his + wives. Their union was short and jealous; but the policy of Timour, in + their frequent quarrels, exposed his rival to the reproach of injustice + and perfidy; and, after a final defeat, Houssein was slain by some + sagacious friends, who presumed, for the last time, to disobey the + commands of their lord. <a href="#linkGnote-113" name="linkGnoteref-113" + id="linkGnoteref-113">113</a> At the age of thirty-four, <a + href="#linkGnote-12" name="linkGnoteref-12" id="linkGnoteref-12">12</a> + and in a general diet or <i>couroultai</i>, he was invested with <i>Imperial</i> + command, but he affected to revere the house of Zingis; and while the emir + Timour reigned over Zagatai and the East, a nominal khan served as a + private officer in the armies of his servant. A fertile kingdom, five + hundred miles in length and in breadth, might have satisfied the ambition + of a subject; but Timour aspired to the dominion of the world; and before + his death, the crown of Zagatai was one of the twenty-seven crowns which + he had placed on his head. Without expatiating on the victories of + thirty-five campaigns; without describing the lines of march, which he + repeatedly traced over the continent of Asia; I shall briefly represent + his conquests in, I. Persia, II. Tartary, and, III. India, <a + href="#linkGnote-13" name="linkGnoteref-13" id="linkGnoteref-13">13</a> + and from thence proceed to the more interesting narrative of his Ottoman + war. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-607" id="linkGnote-607"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 607 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-607">return</a>)<br /> [ In the memoirs, the + title Gurgân is in one place (p. 23) interpreted the son-in-law; in + another (p. 28) as Kurkan, great prince, generalissimo, and prime minister + of Jagtai.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-7" id="linkGnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ After relating some false + and foolish tales of Timour <i>Lenc</i>, Arabshah is compelled to speak + truth, and to own him for a kinsman of Zingis, per mulieres, (as he + peevishly adds,) laqueos Satanæ, (pars i. c. i. p. 25.) The testimony of + Abulghazi Khan (P. ii. c. 5, P. v. c. 4) is clear, unquestionable, and + decisive.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-8" id="linkGnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ According to one of the + pedigrees, the fourth ancestor of Zingis, and the ninth of Timour, were + brothers; and they agreed, that the posterity of the elder should succeed + to the dignity of khan, and that the descendants of the younger should + fill the office of their minister and general. This tradition was at least + convenient to justify the <i>first</i> steps of Timour's ambition, + (Institutions, p. 24, 25, from the MS. fragments of Timour's History.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-9" id="linkGnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ See the preface of + Sherefeddin, and Abulfeda's Geography, (Chorasmiæ, &c., Descriptio, p. + 60, 61,) in the iiid volume of Hudson's Minor Greek Geographers.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-10" id="linkGnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ See his nativity in Dr. + Hyde, (Syntagma Dissertat. tom. ii. p. 466,) as it was cast by the + astrologers of his grandson Ulugh Beg. He was born, A.D. 1336, April 9, + 11º 57'. p. m., lat. 36. I know not whether they can prove the great + conjunction of the planets from whence, like other conquerors and + prophets, Timour derived the surname of Saheb Keran, or master of the + conjunctions, (Bibliot. Orient. p. 878.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-11" id="linkGnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ In the Institutions of + Timour, these subjects of the khan of Kashgar are most improperly styled + Ouzbegs, or Usbeks, a name which belongs to another branch and country of + Tartars, (Abulghazi, P. v. c. v. P. vii. c. 5.) Could I be sure that this + word is in the Turkish original, I would boldly pronounce, that the + Institutions were framed a century after the death of Timour, since the + establishment of the Usbeks in Transoxiana. * Note: Col. Stewart observes, + that the Persian translator has sometimes made use of the name Uzbek by + anticipation. He observes, likewise, that these Jits (Getes) are not to be + confounded with the ancient Getæ: they were unconverted Turks. Col. Tod + (History of Rajasthan, vol. i. p. 166) would identify the Jits with the + ancient race.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-111" id="linkGnote-111"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 111 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-111">return</a>)<br /> [ He was twenty-seven + before he served his first wars under the emir Houssein, who ruled over + Khorasan and Mawerainnehr. Von Hammer, vol. i. p. 262. Neither of these + statements agrees with the Memoirs. At twelve he was a boy. "I fancied + that I perceived in myself all the signs of greatness and wisdom, and + whoever came to visit me, I received with great hauteur and dignity." At + seventeen he undertook the management of the flocks and herds of the + family, (p. 24.) At nineteen he became religious, and "left off playing + chess," made a kind of Budhist vow never to injure living thing and felt + his foot paralyzed from having accidentally trod upon an ant, (p. 30.) At + twenty, thoughts of rebellion and greatness rose in his mind; at + twenty-one, he seems to have performed his first feat of arms. He was a + practised warrior when he served, in his twenty-seventh year, under Emir + Houssein.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-112" id="linkGnote-112"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 112 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-112">return</a>)<br /> [ Compare Memoirs, page + 61. The imprisonment is there stated at fifty-three days. "At this time I + made a vow to God that I would never keep any person, whether guilty or + innocent, for any length of time, in prison or in chains." p. 63.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-113" id="linkGnote-113"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 113 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-113">return</a>)<br /> [ Timour, on one + occasion, sent him this message: "He who wishes to embrace the bride of + royalty must kiss her across the edge of the sharp sword," p. 83. The + scene of the trial of Houssein, the resistance of Timour gradually + becoming more feeble, the vengeance of the chiefs becoming proportionably + more determined, is strikingly portrayed. Mem. p 130.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-12" id="linkGnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ The ist book of + Sherefeddin is employed on the private life of the hero: and he himself, + or his secretary, (Institutions, p. 3—77,) enlarges with pleasure on + the thirteen designs and enterprises which most truly constitute his <i>personal</i> + merit. It even shines through the dark coloring of Arabshah, (P. i. c. 1—12.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-13" id="linkGnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ The conquests of Persia, + Tartary, and India, are represented in the iid and iiid books of + Sherefeddin, and by Arabshah, (c. 13—55.) Consult the excellent + Indexes to the Institutions. * Note: Compare the seventh book of Von + Hammer, Geschichte des Osmanischen Reiches.—M.] + </p> + <p> + I. For every war, a motive of safety or revenge, of honor or zeal, of + right or convenience, may be readily found in the jurisprudence of + conquerors. No sooner had Timour reunited to the patrimony of Zagatai the + dependent countries of Carizme and Candahar, than he turned his eyes + towards the kingdoms of Iran or Persia. From the Oxus to the Tigris, that + extensive country was left without a lawful sovereign since the death of + Abousaid, the last of the descendants of the great Holacou. Peace and + justice had been banished from the land above forty years; and the Mogul + invader might seem to listen to the cries of an oppressed people. Their + petty tyrants might have opposed him with confederate arms: they + separately stood, and successively fell; and the difference of their fate + was only marked by the promptitude of submission or the obstinacy of + resistance. Ibrahim, prince of Shirwan, or Albania, kissed the footstool + of the Imperial throne. His peace-offerings of silks, horses, and jewels, + were composed, according to the Tartar fashion, each article of nine + pieces; but a critical spectator observed, that there were only eight + slaves. "I myself am the ninth," replied Ibrahim, who was prepared for the + remark; and his flattery was rewarded by the smile of Timour. <a + href="#linkGnote-14" name="linkGnoteref-14" id="linkGnoteref-14">14</a> + Shah Mansour, prince of Fars, or the proper Persia, was one of the least + powerful, but most dangerous, of his enemies. In a battle under the walls + of Shiraz, he broke, with three or four thousand soldiers, the <i>coul</i> + or main body of thirty thousand horse, where the emperor fought in person. + No more than fourteen or fifteen guards remained near the standard of + Timour: he stood firm as a rock, and received on his helmet two weighty + strokes of a cimeter: <a href="#linkGnote-15" name="linkGnoteref-15" + id="linkGnoteref-15">15</a> the Moguls rallied; the head of Mansour was + thrown at his feet; and he declared his esteem of the valor of a foe, by + extirpating all the males of so intrepid a race. From Shiraz, his troops + advanced to the Persian Gulf; and the richness and weakness of Ormuz <a + href="#linkGnote-16" name="linkGnoteref-16" id="linkGnoteref-16">16</a> + were displayed in an annual tribute of six hundred thousand dinars of + gold. Bagdad was no longer the city of peace, the seat of the caliphs; but + the noblest conquest of Holacou could not be overlooked by his ambitious + successor. The whole course of the Tigris and Euphrates, from the mouth to + the sources of those rivers, was reduced to his obedience: he entered + Edessa; and the Turkmans of the black sheep were chastised for the + sacrilegious pillage of a caravan of Mecca. In the mountains of Georgia, + the native Christians still braved the law and the sword of Mahomet, by + three expeditions he obtained the merit of the <i>gazie</i>, or holy war; + and the prince of Teflis became his proselyte and friend. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-14" id="linkGnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ The reverence of the + Tartars for the mysterious number of <i>nine</i> is declared by Abulghazi + Khan, who, for that reason, divides his Genealogical History into nine + parts.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-15" id="linkGnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ According to Arabshah, + (P. i. c. 28, p. 183,) the coward Timour ran away to his tent, and hid + himself from the pursuit of Shah Mansour under the women's garments. + Perhaps Sherefeddin (l. iii. c. 25) has magnified his courage.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-16" id="linkGnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ The history of Ormuz is + not unlike that of Tyre. The old city, on the continent, was destroyed by + the Tartars, and renewed in a neighboring island, without fresh water or + vegetation. The kings of Ormuz, rich in the Indian trade and the pearl + fishery, possessed large territories both in Persia and Arabia; but they + were at first the tributaries of the sultans of Kerman, and at last were + delivered (A.D. 1505) by the Portuguese tyrants from the tyranny of their + own viziers, (Marco Polo, l. i. c. 15, 16, fol. 7, 8. Abulfeda, Geograph. + tabul. xi. p. 261, 262, an original Chronicle of Ormuz, in Texeira, or + Stevens's History of Persia, p. 376—416, and the Itineraries + inserted in the ist volume of Ramusio, of Ludovico Barthema, (1503,) fol. + 167, of Andrea Corsali, (1517) fol. 202, 203, and of Odoardo Barbessa, (in + 1516,) fol. 313—318.)] + </p> + <p> + II. A just retaliation might be urged for the invasion of Turkestan, or + the Eastern Tartary. The dignity of Timour could not endure the impunity + of the Getes: he passed the Sihoon, subdued the kingdom of Kashgar, and + marched seven times into the heart of their country. His most distant camp + was two months' journey, or four hundred and eighty leagues to the + north-east of Samarcand; and his emirs, who traversed the River Irtish, + engraved in the forests of Siberia a rude memorial of their exploits. The + conquest of Kipzak, or the Western Tartary, <a href="#linkGnote-17" + name="linkGnoteref-17" id="linkGnoteref-17">17</a> was founded on the + double motive of aiding the distressed, and chastising the ungrateful. + Toctamish, a fugitive prince, was entertained and protected in his court: + the ambassadors of Auruss Khan were dismissed with a haughty denial, and + followed on the same day by the armies of Zagatai; and their success + established Toctamish in the Mogul empire of the North. But, after a reign + of ten years, the new khan forgot the merits and the strength of his + benefactor; the base usurper, as he deemed him, of the sacred rights of + the house of Zingis. Through the gates of Derbend, he entered Persia at + the head of ninety thousand horse: with the innumerable forces of Kipzak, + Bulgaria, Circassia, and Russia, he passed the Sihoon, burnt the palaces + of Timour, and compelled him, amidst the winter snows, to contend for + Samarcand and his life. After a mild expostulation, and a glorious + victory, the emperor resolved on revenge; and by the east, and the west, + of the Caspian, and the Volga, he twice invaded Kipzak with such mighty + powers, that thirteen miles were measured from his right to his left wing. + In a march of five months, they rarely beheld the footsteps of man; and + their daily subsistence was often trusted to the fortune of the chase. At + length the armies encountered each other; but the treachery of the + standard-bearer, who, in the heat of action, reversed the Imperial + standard of Kipzak, determined the victory of the Zagatais; and Toctamish + (I speak the language of the Institutions) gave the tribe of Toushi to the + wind of desolation. <a href="#linkGnote-18" name="linkGnoteref-18" + id="linkGnoteref-18">18</a> He fled to the Christian duke of Lithuania; + again returned to the banks of the Volga; and, after fifteen battles with + a domestic rival, at last perished in the wilds of Siberia. The pursuit of + a flying enemy carried Timour into the tributary provinces of Russia: a + duke of the reigning family was made prisoner amidst the ruins of his + capital; and Yeletz, by the pride and ignorance of the Orientals, might + easily be confounded with the genuine metropolis of the nation. Moscow + trembled at the approach of the Tartar, and the resistance would have been + feeble, since the hopes of the Russians were placed in a miraculous image + of the Virgin, to whose protection they ascribed the casual and voluntary + retreat of the conqueror. Ambition and prudence recalled him to the South, + the desolate country was exhausted, and the Mogul soldiers were enriched + with an immense spoil of precious furs, of linen of Antioch, <a + href="#linkGnote-19" name="linkGnoteref-19" id="linkGnoteref-19">19</a> + and of ingots of gold and silver. <a href="#linkGnote-20" + name="linkGnoteref-20" id="linkGnoteref-20">20</a> On the banks of the + Don, or Tanais, he received an humble deputation from the consuls and + merchants of Egypt, <a href="#linkGnote-21" name="linkGnoteref-21" + id="linkGnoteref-21">21</a> Venice, Genoa, Catalonia, and Biscay, who + occupied the commerce and city of Tana, or Azoph, at the mouth of the + river. They offered their gifts, admired his magnificence, and trusted his + royal word. But the peaceful visit of an emir, who explored the state of + the magazines and harbor, was speedily followed by the destructive + presence of the Tartars. The city was reduced to ashes; the Moslems were + pillaged and dismissed; but all the Christians, who had not fled to their + ships, were condemned either to death or slavery. <a href="#linkGnote-22" + name="linkGnoteref-22" id="linkGnoteref-22">22</a> Revenge prompted him to + burn the cities of Serai and Astrachan, the monuments of rising + civilization; and his vanity proclaimed, that he had penetrated to the + region of perpetual daylight, a strange phenomenon, which authorized his + Mahometan doctors to dispense with the obligation of evening prayer. <a + href="#linkGnote-23" name="linkGnoteref-23" id="linkGnoteref-23">23</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-17" id="linkGnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ Arabshah had travelled + into Kipzak, and acquired a singular knowledge of the geography, cities, + and revolutions, of that northern region, (P. i. c. 45—49.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-18" id="linkGnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ Institutions of Timour, + p. 123, 125. Mr. White, the editor, bestows some animadversion on the + superficial account of Sherefeddin, (l. iii. c. 12, 13, 14,) who was + ignorant of the designs of Timour, and the true springs of action.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-19" id="linkGnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ The furs of Russia are + more credible than the ingots. But the linen of Antioch has never been + famous: and Antioch was in ruins. I suspect that it was some manufacture + of Europe, which the Hanse merchants had imported by the way of + Novogorod.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-20" id="linkGnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ M. Levesque (Hist. de + Russie, tom. ii. p. 247. Vie de Timour, p. 64—67, before the French + version of the Institutes) has corrected the error of Sherefeddin, and + marked the true limit of Timour's conquests. His arguments are + superfluous; and a simple appeal to the Russian annals is sufficient to + prove that Moscow, which six years before had been taken by Toctamish, + escaped the arms of a more formidable invader.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-21" id="linkGnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ An Egyptian consul from + Grand Cairo is mentioned in Barbaro's voyage to Tana in 1436, after the + city had been rebuilt, (Ramusio, tom. ii. fol. 92.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-22" id="linkGnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ The sack of Azoph is + described by Sherefeddin, (l. iii. c. 55,) and much more particularly by + the author of an Italian chronicle, (Andreas de Redusiis de Quero, in + Chron. Tarvisiano, in Muratori, Script. Rerum Italicarum, tom. xix. p. 802—805.) + He had conversed with the Mianis, two Venetian brothers, one of whom had + been sent a deputy to the camp of Timour, and the other had lost at Azoph + three sons and 12,000 ducats.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-23" id="linkGnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ Sherefeddin only says + (l. iii. c. 13) that the rays of the setting, and those of the rising sun, + were scarcely separated by any interval; a problem which may be solved in + the latitude of Moscow, (the 56th degree,) with the aid of the Aurora + Borealis, and a long summer twilight. But a <i>day</i> of forty days + (Khondemir apud D'Herbelot, p. 880) would rigorously confine us within the + polar circle.] + </p> + <p> + III. When Timour first proposed to his princes and emirs the invasion of + India or Hindostan, <a href="#linkGnote-24" name="linkGnoteref-24" + id="linkGnoteref-24">24</a> he was answered by a murmur of discontent: + "The rivers! and the mountains and deserts! and the soldiers clad in + armor! and the elephants, destroyers of men!" But the displeasure of the + emperor was more dreadful than all these terrors; and his superior reason + was convinced, that an enterprise of such tremendous aspect was safe and + easy in the execution. He was informed by his spies of the weakness and + anarchy of Hindostan: the soubahs of the provinces had erected the + standard of rebellion; and the perpetual infancy of Sultan Mahmoud was + despised even in the harem of Delhi. The Mogul army moved in three great + divisions; and Timour observes with pleasure, that the ninety-two + squadrons of a thousand horse most fortunately corresponded with the + ninety-two names or epithets of the prophet Mahomet. <a + href="#linkGnote-241" name="linkGnoteref-241" id="linkGnoteref-241">241</a> + Between the Jihoon and the Indus they crossed one of the ridges of + mountains, which are styled by the Arabian geographers The Stony Girdles + of the Earth. The highland robbers were subdued or extirpated; but great + numbers of men and horses perished in the snow; the emperor himself was + let down a precipice on a portable scaffold—the ropes were one + hundred and fifty cubits in length; and before he could reach the bottom, + this dangerous operation was five times repeated. Timour crossed the Indus + at the ordinary passage of Attok; and successively traversed, in the + footsteps of Alexander, the <i>Punjab</i>, or five rivers, <a + href="#linkGnote-25" name="linkGnoteref-25" id="linkGnoteref-25">25</a> + that fall into the master stream. From Attok to Delhi, the high road + measures no more than six hundred miles; but the two conquerors deviated + to the south-east; and the motive of Timour was to join his grandson, who + had achieved by his command the conquest of Moultan. On the eastern bank + of the Hyphasis, on the edge of the desert, the Macedonian hero halted and + wept: the Mogul entered the desert, reduced the fortress of Batmir, and + stood in arms before the gates of Delhi, a great and flourishing city, + which had subsisted three centuries under the dominion of the Mahometan + kings. <a href="#linkGnote-251" name="linkGnoteref-251" + id="linkGnoteref-251">251</a> The siege, more especially of the castle, + might have been a work of time; but he tempted, by the appearance of + weakness, the sultan Mahmoud and his vizier to descend into the plain, + with ten thousand cuirassiers, forty thousand of his foot-guards, and one + hundred and twenty elephants, whose tusks are said to have been armed with + sharp and poisoned daggers. Against these monsters, or rather against the + imagination of his troops, he condescended to use some extraordinary + precautions of fire and a ditch, of iron spikes and a rampart of bucklers; + but the event taught the Moguls to smile at their own fears; and as soon + as these unwieldy animals were routed, the inferior species (the men of + India) disappeared from the field. Timour made his triumphal entry into + the capital of Hindostan; and admired, with a view to imitate, the + architecture of the stately mosque; but the order or license of a general + pillage and massacre polluted the festival of his victory. He resolved to + purify his soldiers in the blood of the idolaters, or Gentoos, who still + surpass, in the proportion of ten to one, the numbers of the Moslems. <a + href="#linkGnote-252" name="linkGnoteref-252" id="linkGnoteref-252">252</a> + In this pious design, he advanced one hundred miles to the north-east of + Delhi, passed the Ganges, fought several battles by land and water, and + penetrated to the famous rock of Coupele, the statue of the cow, <a + href="#linkGnote-253" name="linkGnoteref-253" id="linkGnoteref-253">253</a> + that <i>seems</i> to discharge the mighty river, whose source is far + distant among the mountains of Thibet. <a href="#linkGnote-26" + name="linkGnoteref-26" id="linkGnoteref-26">26</a> His return was along + the skirts of the northern hills; nor could this rapid campaign of one + year justify the strange foresight of his emirs, that their children in a + warm climate would degenerate into a race of Hindoos. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-24" id="linkGnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ For the Indian war, see + the Institutions, (p. 129—139,) the fourth book of Sherefeddin, and + the history of Ferishta, (in Dow, vol. ii. p. 1—20,) which throws a + general light on the affairs of Hindostan.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-241" id="linkGnote-241"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 241 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-241">return</a>)<br /> [ Gibbon (observes M. + von Hammer) is mistaken in the correspondence of the ninety-two squadrons + of his army with the ninety-two names of God: the names of God are + ninety-nine. and Allah is the hundredth, p. 286, Gnote. But Gibbon speaks + of the names or epithets of Mahomet, not of God.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-25" id="linkGnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ The rivers of the + Punjab, the five eastern branches of the Indus, have been laid down for + the first time with truth and accuracy in Major Rennel's incomparable map + of Hindostan. In this Critical Memoir he illustrates with judgment and + learning the marches of Alexander and Timour. * Note See vol. i. ch. ii. + Gnote 1.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-251" id="linkGnote-251"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 251 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-251">return</a>)<br /> [ They took, on their + march, 100,000 slaves, Guebers they were all murdered. V. Hammer, vol. i. + p. 286. They are called idolaters. Briggs's Ferishta, vol. i. p. 491.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-252" id="linkGnote-252"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 252 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-252">return</a>)<br /> [ See a curious passage + on the destruction of the Hindoo idols, Memoirs, p. 15.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-253" id="linkGnote-253"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 253 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-253">return</a>)<br /> [ Consult the very + striking description of the Cow's Mouth by Captain Hodgson, Asiat. Res. + vol. xiv. p. 117. "A most wonderful scene. The B'hagiratha or Ganges + issues from under a very low arch at the foot of the grand snow bed. My + guide, an illiterate mountaineer compared the pendent icicles to + Mahodeva's hair." (Compare Poems, Quarterly Rev. vol. xiv. p. 37, and at + the end of my translation of Nala.) "Hindoos of research may formerly have + been here; and if so, I cannot think of any place to which they might more + aptly give the name of a cow's mouth than to this extraordinary debouche."—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-26" id="linkGnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ The two great rivers, + the Ganges and Burrampooter, rise in Thibet, from the opposite ridges of + the same hills, separate from each other to the distance of 1200 miles, + and, after a winding course of 2000 miles, again meet in one point near + the Gulf of Bengal. Yet so capricious is Fame, that the Burrampooter is a + late discovery, while his brother Ganges has been the theme of ancient and + modern story Coupele, the scene of Timour's last victory, must be situate + near Loldong, 1100 miles from Calcutta; and in 1774, a British camp! + (Rennel's Memoir, p. 7, 59, 90, 91, 99.)] + </p> + <p> + It was on the banks of the Ganges that Timour was informed, by his speedy + messengers, of the disturbances which had arisen on the confines of + Georgia and Anatolia, of the revolt of the Christians, and the ambitious + designs of the sultan Bajazet. His vigor of mind and body was not impaired + by sixty-three years, and innumerable fatigues; and, after enjoying some + tranquil months in the palace of Samarcand, he proclaimed a new expedition + of seven years into the western countries of Asia. <a href="#linkGnote-27" + name="linkGnoteref-27" id="linkGnoteref-27">27</a> To the soldiers who had + served in the Indian war he granted the choice of remaining at home, or + following their prince; but the troops of all the provinces and kingdoms + of Persia were commanded to assemble at Ispahan, and wait the arrival of + the Imperial standard. It was first directed against the Christians of + Georgia, who were strong only in their rocks, their castles, and the + winter season; but these obstacles were overcome by the zeal and + perseverance of Timour: the rebels submitted to the tribute or the Koran; + and if both religions boasted of their martyrs, that name is more justly + due to the Christian prisoners, who were offered the choice of abjuration + or death. On his descent from the hills, the emperor gave audience to the + first ambassadors of Bajazet, and opened the hostile correspondence of + complaints and menaces, which fermented two years before the final + explosion. Between two jealous and haughty neighbors, the motives of + quarrel will seldom be wanting. The Mogul and Ottoman conquests now + touched each other in the neighborhood of Erzeroum, and the Euphrates; nor + had the doubtful limit been ascertained by time and treaty. Each of these + ambitious monarchs might accuse his rival of violating his territory, of + threatening his vassals, and protecting his rebels; and, by the name of + rebels, each understood the fugitive princes, whose kingdoms he had + usurped, and whose life or liberty he implacably pursued. The resemblance + of character was still more dangerous than the opposition of interest; and + in their victorious career, Timour was impatient of an equal, and Bajazet + was ignorant of a superior. The first epistle <a href="#linkGnote-28" + name="linkGnoteref-28" id="linkGnoteref-28">28</a> of the Mogul emperor + must have provoked, instead of reconciling, the Turkish sultan, whose + family and nation he affected to despise. <a href="#linkGnote-29" + name="linkGnoteref-29" id="linkGnoteref-29">29</a> "Dost thou not know, + that the greatest part of Asia is subject to our arms and our laws? that + our invincible forces extend from one sea to the other? that the + potentates of the earth form a line before our gate? and that we have + compelled Fortune herself to watch over the prosperity of our empire. What + is the foundation of thy insolence and folly? Thou hast fought some + battles in the woods of Anatolia; contemptible trophies! Thou hast + obtained some victories over the Christians of Europe; thy sword was + blessed by the apostle of God; and thy obedience to the precept of the + Koran, in waging war against the infidels, is the sole consideration that + prevents us from destroying thy country, the frontier and bulwark of the + Moslem world. Be wise in time; reflect; repent; and avert the thunder of + our vengeance, which is yet suspended over thy head. Thou art no more than + a pismire; why wilt thou seek to provoke the elephants? Alas! they will + trample thee under their feet." In his replies, Bajazet poured forth the + indignation of a soul which was deeply stung by such unusual contempt. + After retorting the basest reproaches on the thief and rebel of the + desert, the Ottoman recapitulates his boasted victories in Iran, Touran, + and the Indies; and labors to prove, that Timour had never triumphed + unless by his own perfidy and the vices of his foes. "Thy armies are + innumerable: be they so; but what are the arrows of the flying Tartar + against the cimeters and battle-axes of my firm and invincible Janizaries? + I will guard the princes who have implored my protection: seek them in my + tents. The cities of Arzingan and Erzeroum are mine; and unless the + tribute be duly paid, I will demand the arrears under the walls of Tauris + and Sultania." The ungovernable rage of the sultan at length betrayed him + to an insult of a more domestic kind. "If I fly from thy arms," said he, + "may <i>my</i> wives be thrice divorced from my bed: but if thou hast not + courage to meet me in the field, mayest thou again receive <i>thy</i> + wives after they have thrice endured the embraces of a stranger." <a + href="#linkGnote-30" name="linkGnoteref-30" id="linkGnoteref-30">30</a> + Any violation by word or deed of the secrecy of the harem is an + unpardonable offence among the Turkish nations; <a href="#linkGnote-31" + name="linkGnoteref-31" id="linkGnoteref-31">31</a> and the political + quarrel of the two monarchs was imbittered by private and personal + resentment. Yet in his first expedition, Timour was satisfied with the + siege and destruction of Siwas or Sebaste, a strong city on the borders of + Anatolia; and he revenged the indiscretion of the Ottoman, on a garrison + of four thousand Armenians, who were buried alive for the brave and + faithful discharge of their duty. <a href="#linkGnote-311" + name="linkGnoteref-311" id="linkGnoteref-311">311</a> As a Mussulman, he + seemed to respect the pious occupation of Bajazet, who was still engaged + in the blockade of Constantinople; and after this salutary lesson, the + Mogul conqueror checked his pursuit, and turned aside to the invasion of + Syria and Egypt. In these transactions, the Ottoman prince, by the + Orientals, and even by Timour, is styled the <i>Kaissar of Roum</i>, the + Cæsar of the Romans; a title which, by a small anticipation, might be + given to a monarch who possessed the provinces, and threatened the city, + of the successors of Constantine. <a href="#linkGnote-32" + name="linkGnoteref-32" id="linkGnoteref-32">32</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-27" id="linkGnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Institutions, p. + 141, to the end of the 1st book, and Sherefeddin, (l. v. c. 1—16,) + to the entrance of Timour into Syria.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-28" id="linkGnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ We have three copies of + these hostile epistles in the Institutions, (p. 147,) in Sherefeddin, (l. + v. c. 14,) and in Arabshah, (tom. ii. c. 19 p. 183—201;) which agree + with each other in the spirit and substance rather than in the style. It + is probable, that they have been translated, with various latitude, from + the Turkish original into the Arabic and Persian tongues. * Note: Von + Hammer considers the letter which Gibbon inserted in the text to be + spurious. On the various copies of these letters, see his Gnote, p 116.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-29" id="linkGnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ The Mogul emir + distinguishes himself and his countrymen by the name of <i>Turks</i>, and + stigmatizes the race and nation of Bajazet with the less honorable epithet + of <i>Turkmans</i>. Yet I do not understand how the Ottomans could be + descended from a Turkman sailor; those inland shepherds were so remote + from the sea, and all maritime affairs. * Note: Price translated the word + pilot or boatman.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-30" id="linkGnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ According to the Koran, + (c. ii. p. 27, and Sale's Discourses, p. 134,) Mussulman who had thrice + divorced his wife, (who had thrice repeated the words of a divorce,) could + not take her again, till after she had been married <i>to</i>, and + repudiated <i>by</i>, another husband; an ignominious transaction, which + it is needless to aggravate, by supposing that the first husband must see + her enjoyed by a second before his face, (Rycaut's State of the Ottoman + Empire, l. ii. c. 21.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-31" id="linkGnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ The common delicacy of + the Orientals, in never speaking of their women, is ascribed in a much + higher degree by Arabshah to the Turkish nations; and it is remarkable + enough, that Chalcondyles (l. ii. p. 55) had some knowledge of the + prejudice and the insult. * Note: See Von Hammer, p. 308, and Gnote, p. + 621.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-311" id="linkGnote-311"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 311 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-311">return</a>)<br /> [ Still worse + barbarities were perpetrated on these brave men. Von Hammer, vol. i. p. + 295.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-32" id="linkGnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ For the style of the + Moguls, see the Institutions, (p. 131, 147,) and for the Persians, the + Bibliothèque Orientale, (p. 882;) but I do not find that the title of + Cæsar has been applied by the Arabians, or assumed by the Ottomans + themselves.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkG2HCH0002" id="linkG2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXV: Elevation Of Timour Or Tamerlane, And His Death.—Part + II. + </h2> + <p> + The military republic of the Mamalukes still reigned in Egypt and Syria: + but the dynasty of the Turks was overthrown by that of the Circassians; <a + href="#linkGnote-33" name="linkGnoteref-33" id="linkGnoteref-33">33</a> + and their favorite Barkok, from a slave and a prisoner, was raised and + restored to the throne. In the midst of rebellion and discord, he braved + the menaces, corresponded with the enemies, and detained the ambassadors, + of the Mogul, who patiently expected his decease, to revenge the crimes of + the father on the feeble reign of his son Farage. The Syrian emirs <a + href="#linkGnote-34" name="linkGnoteref-34" id="linkGnoteref-34">34</a> + were assembled at Aleppo to repel the invasion: they confided in the fame + and discipline of the Mamalukes, in the temper of their swords and lances + of the purest steel of Damascus, in the strength of their walled cities, + and in the populousness of sixty thousand villages; and instead of + sustaining a siege, they threw open their gates, and arrayed their forces + in the plain. But these forces were not cemented by virtue and union; and + some powerful emirs had been seduced to desert or betray their more loyal + companions. Timour's front was covered with a line of Indian elephants, + whose turrets were filled with archers and Greek fire: the rapid + evolutions of his cavalry completed the dismay and disorder; the Syrian + crowds fell back on each other: many thousands were stifled or slaughtered + in the entrance of the great street; the Moguls entered with the + fugitives; and after a short defence, the citadel, the impregnable citadel + of Aleppo, was surrendered by cowardice or treachery. Among the suppliants + and captives, Timour distinguished the doctors of the law, whom he invited + to the dangerous honor of a personal conference. <a href="#linkGnote-35" + name="linkGnoteref-35" id="linkGnoteref-35">35</a> The Mogul prince was a + zealous Mussulman; but his Persian schools had taught him to revere the + memory of Ali and Hosein; and he had imbibed a deep prejudice against the + Syrians, as the enemies of the son of the daughter of the apostle of God. + To these doctors he proposed a captious question, which the casuists of + Bochara, Samarcand, and Herat, were incapable of resolving. "Who are the + true martyrs, of those who are slain on my side, or on that of my + enemies?" But he was silenced, or satisfied, by the dexterity of one of + the cadhis of Aleppo, who replied in the words of Mahomet himself, that + the motive, not the ensign, constitutes the martyr; and that the Moslems + of either party, who fight only for the glory of God, may deserve that + sacred appellation. The true succession of the caliphs was a controversy + of a still more delicate nature; and the frankness of a doctor, too honest + for his situation, provoked the emperor to exclaim, "Ye are as false as + those of Damascus: Moawiyah was a usurper, Yezid a tyrant, and Ali alone + is the lawful successor of the prophet." A prudent explanation restored + his tranquillity; and he passed to a more familiar topic of conversation. + "What is your age?" said he to the cadhi. "Fifty years."—"It would + be the age of my eldest son: you see me here (continued Timour) a poor + lame, decrepit mortal. Yet by my arm has the Almighty been pleased to + subdue the kingdoms of Iran, Touran, and the Indies. I am not a man of + blood; and God is my witness, that in all my wars I have never been the + aggressor, and that my enemies have always been the authors of their own + calamity." During this peaceful conversation the streets of Aleppo + streamed with blood, and reechoed with the cries of mothers and children, + with the shrieks of violated virgins. The rich plunder that was abandoned + to his soldiers might stimulate their avarice; but their cruelty was + enforced by the peremptory command of producing an adequate number of + heads, which, according to his custom, were curiously piled in columns and + pyramids: the Moguls celebrated the feast of victory, while the surviving + Moslems passed the night in tears and in chains. I shall not dwell on the + march of the destroyer from Aleppo to Damascus, where he was rudely + encountered, and almost overthrown, by the armies of Egypt. A retrograde + motion was imputed to his distress and despair: one of his nephews + deserted to the enemy; and Syria rejoiced in the tale of his defeat, when + the sultan was driven by the revolt of the Mamalukes to escape with + precipitation and shame to his palace of Cairo. Abandoned by their prince, + the inhabitants of Damascus still defended their walls; and Timour + consented to raise the siege, if they would adorn his retreat with a gift + or ransom; each article of nine pieces. But no sooner had he introduced + himself into the city, under color of a truce, than he perfidiously + violated the treaty; imposed a contribution of ten millions of gold; and + animated his troops to chastise the posterity of those Syrians who had + executed, or approved, the murder of the grandson of Mahomet. A family + which had given honorable burial to the head of Hosein, and a colony of + artificers, whom he sent to labor at Samarcand, were alone reserved in the + general massacre, and after a period of seven centuries, Damascus was + reduced to ashes, because a Tartar was moved by religious zeal to avenge + the blood of an Arab. The losses and fatigues of the campaign obliged + Timour to renounce the conquest of Palestine and Egypt; but in his return + to the Euphrates he delivered Aleppo to the flames; and justified his + pious motive by the pardon and reward of two thousand sectaries of Ali, + who were desirous to visit the tomb of his son. I have expatiated on the + personal anecdotes which mark the character of the Mogul hero; but I shall + briefly mention, <a href="#linkGnote-36" name="linkGnoteref-36" + id="linkGnoteref-36">36</a> that he erected on the ruins of Bagdad a + pyramid of ninety thousand heads; again visited Georgia; encamped on the + banks of Araxes; and proclaimed his resolution of marching against the + Ottoman emperor. Conscious of the importance of the war, he collected his + forces from every province: eight hundred thousand men were enrolled on + his military list; <a href="#linkGnote-37" name="linkGnoteref-37" + id="linkGnoteref-37">37</a> but the splendid commands of five, and ten, + thousand horse, may be rather expressive of the rank and pension of the + chiefs, than of the genuine number of effective soldiers. <a + href="#linkGnote-38" name="linkGnoteref-38" id="linkGnoteref-38">38</a> In + the pillage of Syria, the Moguls had acquired immense riches: but the + delivery of their pay and arrears for seven years more firmly attached + them to the Imperial standard. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-33" id="linkGnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ See the reigns of Barkok + and Pharadge, in M. De Guignes, (tom. iv. l. xxii.,) who, from the Arabic + texts of Aboulmahasen, Ebn (Schounah, and Aintabi, has added some facts to + our common stock of materials.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-34" id="linkGnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ For these recent and + domestic transactions, Arabshah, though a partial, is a credible, witness, + (tom. i. c. 64—68, tom. ii. c. 1—14.) Timour must have been + odious to a Syrian; but the notoriety of facts would have obliged him, in + some measure, to respect his enemy and himself. His bitters may correct + the luscious sweets of Sherefeddin, (l. v. c. 17—29.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-35" id="linkGnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ These interesting + conversations appear to have been copied by Arabshah (tom. i. c. 68, p. + 625—645) from the cadhi and historian Ebn Schounah, a principal + actor. Yet how could he be alive seventy-five years afterwards? + (D'Herbelot, p. 792.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-36" id="linkGnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ The marches and + occupations of Timour between the Syrian and Ottoman wars are represented + by Sherefeddin (l. v. c. 29—43) and Arabshah, (tom. ii. c. 15—18.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-37" id="linkGnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ This number of 800,000 + was extracted by Arabshah, or rather by Ebn Schounah, ex rationario + Timuri, on the faith of a Carizmian officer, (tom. i. c. 68, p. 617;) and + it is remarkable enough, that a Greek historian (Phranza, l. i. c. 29) + adds no more than 20,000 men. Poggius reckons 1,000,000; another Latin + contemporary (Chron. Tarvisianum, apud Muratori, tom. xix. p. 800) + 1,100,000; and the enormous sum of 1,600,000 is attested by a German + soldier, who was present at the battle of Angora, (Leunclav. ad + Chalcondyl. l. iii. p. 82.) Timour, in his Institutions, has not deigned + to calculate his troops, his subjects, or his revenues.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-38" id="linkGnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ A wide latitude of + non-effectives was allowed by the Great Mogul for his own pride and the + benefit of his officers. Bernier's patron was Penge-Hazari, commander of + 5000 horse; of which he maintained no more than 500, (Voyages, tom. i. p. + 288, 289.)] + </p> + <p> + During this diversion of the Mogul arms, Bajazet had two years to collect + his forces for a more serious encounter. They consisted of four hundred + thousand horse and foot, <a href="#linkGnote-39" name="linkGnoteref-39" + id="linkGnoteref-39">39</a> whose merit and fidelity were of an unequal + complexion. We may discriminate the Janizaries, who have been gradually + raised to an establishment of forty thousand men; a national cavalry, the + Spahis of modern times; twenty thousand cuirassiers of Europe, clad in + black and impenetrable armor; the troops of Anatolia, whose princes had + taken refuge in the camp of Timour, and a colony of Tartars, whom he had + driven from Kipzak, and to whom Bajazet had assigned a settlement in the + plains of Adrianople. The fearless confidence of the sultan urged him to + meet his antagonist; and, as if he had chosen that spot for revenge, he + displayed his banner near the ruins of the unfortunate Suvas. In the mean + while, Timour moved from the Araxes through the countries of Armenia and + Anatolia: his boldness was secured by the wisest precautions; his speed + was guided by order and discipline; and the woods, the mountains, and the + rivers, were diligently explored by the flying squadrons, who marked his + road and preceded his standard. Firm in his plan of fighting in the heart + of the Ottoman kingdom, he avoided their camp; dexterously inclined to the + left; occupied Cæsarea; traversed the salt desert and the River Halys; and + invested Angora: while the sultan, immovable and ignorant in his post, + compared the Tartar swiftness to the crawling of a snail; <a + href="#linkGnote-40" name="linkGnoteref-40" id="linkGnoteref-40">40</a> he + returned on the wings of indignation to the relief of Angora: and as both + generals were alike impatient for action, the plains round that city were + the scene of a memorable battle, which has immortalized the glory of + Timour and the shame of Bajazet. For this signal victory the Mogul emperor + was indebted to himself, to the genius of the moment, and the discipline + of thirty years. He had improved the tactics, without violating the + manners, of his nation, <a href="#linkGnote-41" name="linkGnoteref-41" + id="linkGnoteref-41">41</a> whose force still consisted in the missile + weapons, and rapid evolutions, of a numerous cavalry. From a single troop + to a great army, the mode of attack was the same: a foremost line first + advanced to the charge, and was supported in a just order by the squadrons + of the great vanguard. The general's eye watched over the field, and at + his command the front and rear of the right and left wings successively + moved forwards in their several divisions, and in a direct or oblique + line: the enemy was pressed by eighteen or twenty attacks; and each attack + afforded a chance of victory. If they all proved fruitless or + unsuccessful, the occasion was worthy of the emperor himself, who gave the + signal of advancing to the standard and main body, which he led in person. + <a href="#linkGnote-42" name="linkGnoteref-42" id="linkGnoteref-42">42</a> + But in the battle of Angora, the main body itself was supported, on the + flanks and in the rear, by the bravest squadrons of the reserve, commanded + by the sons and grandsons of Timour. The conqueror of Hindostan + ostentatiously showed a line of elephants, the trophies, rather than the + instruments, of victory; the use of the Greek fire was familiar to the + Moguls and Ottomans; but had they borrowed from Europe the recent + invention of gunpowder and cannon, the artificial thunder, in the hands of + either nation, must have turned the fortune of the day. <a + href="#linkGnote-43" name="linkGnoteref-43" id="linkGnoteref-43">43</a> In + that day Bajazet displayed the qualities of a soldier and a chief: but his + genius sunk under a stronger ascendant; and, from various motives, the + greatest part of his troops failed him in the decisive moment. His rigor + and avarice <a href="#linkGnote-431" name="linkGnoteref-431" + id="linkGnoteref-431">431</a> had provoked a mutiny among the Turks; and + even his son Soliman too hastily withdrew from the field. The forces of + Anatolia, loyal in their revolt, were drawn away to the banners of their + lawful princes. His Tartar allies had been tempted by the letters and + emissaries of Timour; <a href="#linkGnote-44" name="linkGnoteref-44" + id="linkGnoteref-44">44</a> who reproached their ignoble servitude under + the slaves of their fathers; and offered to their hopes the dominion of + their new, or the liberty of their ancient, country. In the right wing of + Bajazet the cuirassiers of Europe charged, with faithful hearts and + irresistible arms: but these men of iron were soon broken by an artful + flight and headlong pursuit; and the Janizaries, alone, without cavalry or + missile weapons, were encompassed by the circle of the Mogul hunters. + Their valor was at length oppressed by heat, thirst, and the weight of + numbers; and the unfortunate sultan, afflicted with the gout in his hands + and feet, was transported from the field on the fleetest of his horses. He + was pursued and taken by the titular khan of Zagatai; and, after his + capture, and the defeat of the Ottoman powers, the kingdom of Anatolia + submitted to the conqueror, who planted his standard at Kiotahia, and + dispersed on all sides the ministers of rapine and destruction. Mirza + Mehemmed Sultan, the eldest and best beloved of his grandsons, was + despatched to Boursa, with thirty thousand horse; and such was his + youthful ardor, that he arrived with only four thousand at the gates of + the capital, after performing in five days a march of two hundred and + thirty miles. Yet fear is still more rapid in its course; and Soliman, the + son of Bajazet, had already passed over to Europe with the royal treasure. + The spoil, however, of the palace and city was immense: the inhabitants + had escaped; but the buildings, for the most part of wood, were reduced to + ashes. From Boursa, the grandson of Timour advanced to Nice, ever yet a + fair and flourishing city; and the Mogul squadrons were only stopped by + the waves of the Propontis. The same success attended the other mirzas and + emirs in their excursions; and Smyrna, defended by the zeal and courage of + the Rhodian knights, alone deserved the presence of the emperor himself. + After an obstinate defence, the place was taken by storm: all that + breathed was put to the sword; and the heads of the Christian heroes were + launched from the engines, on board of two carracks, or great ships of + Europe, that rode at anchor in the harbor. The Moslems of Asia rejoiced in + their deliverance from a dangerous and domestic foe; and a parallel was + drawn between the two rivals, by observing that Timour, in fourteen days, + had reduced a fortress which had sustained seven years the siege, or at + least the blockade, of Bajazet. <a href="#linkGnote-45" + name="linkGnoteref-45" id="linkGnoteref-45">45</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-39" id="linkGnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ Timour himself fixes at + 400,000 men the Ottoman army, (Institutions, p. 153,) which is reduced to + 150,000 by Phranza, (l. i. c. 29,) and swelled by the German soldier to + 1,400,000. It is evident that the Moguls were the more numerous.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-40" id="linkGnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ It may not be useless to + mark the distances between Angora and the neighboring cities, by the + journeys of the caravans, each of twenty or twenty-five miles; to Smyrna + xx., to Kiotahia x., to Boursa x., to Cæsarea, viii., to Sinope x., to + Nicomedia ix., to Constantinople xii. or xiii., (see Tournefort, Voyage au + Levant, tom. ii. lettre xxi.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-41" id="linkGnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Systems of + Tactics in the Institutions, which the English editors have illustrated + with elaborate plans, (p. 373—407.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-42" id="linkGnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ The sultan himself (says + Timour) must then put the foot of courage into the stirrup of patience. A + Tartar metaphor, which is lost in the English, but preserved in the + French, version of the Institutes, (p. 156, 157.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-43" id="linkGnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ The Greek fire, on + Timour's side, is attested by Sherefeddin, (l. v. c. 47;) but Voltaire's + strange suspicion, that some cannon, inscribed with strange characters, + must have been sent by that monarch to Delhi, is refuted by the universal + silence of contemporaries.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-431" id="linkGnote-431"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 431 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-431">return</a>)<br /> [ See V. Hammer, vol. i. + p. 310, for the singular hints which were conveyed to him of the wisdom of + unlocking his hoarded treasures.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-44" id="linkGnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ Timour has dissembled + this secret and important negotiation with the Tartars, which is + indisputably proved by the joint evidence of the Arabian, (tom. i. c. 47, + p. 391,) Turkish, (Annal. Leunclav. p. 321,) and Persian historians, + (Khondemir, apud d'Herbelot, p. 882.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-45" id="linkGnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ For the war of Anatolia + or Roum, I add some hints in the Institutions, to the copious narratives + of Sherefeddin (l. v. c. 44—65) and Arabshah, (tom. ii. c. 20—35.) + On this part only of Timour's history it is lawful to quote the Turks, + (Cantemir, p. 53—55, Annal. Leunclav. p. 320—322,) and the + Greeks, (Phranza, l. i. c. 59, Ducas, c. 15—17, Chalcondyles, l. + iii.)] + </p> + <p> + The <i>iron cage</i> in which Bajazet was imprisoned by Tamerlane, so long + and so often repeated as a moral lesson, is now rejected as a fable by the + modern writers, who smile at the vulgar credulity. <a href="#linkGnote-46" + name="linkGnoteref-46" id="linkGnoteref-46">46</a> They appeal with + confidence to the Persian history of Sherefeddin Ali, which has been given + to our curiosity in a French version, and from which I shall collect and + abridge a more specious narrative of this memorable transaction. No sooner + was Timour informed that the captive Ottoman was at the door of his tent, + than he graciously stepped forwards to receive him, seated him by his + side, and mingled with just reproaches a soothing pity for his rank and + misfortune. "Alas!" said the emperor, "the decree of fate is now + accomplished by your own fault; it is the web which you have woven, the + thorns of the tree which yourself have planted. I wished to spare, and + even to assist, the champion of the Moslems; you braved our threats; you + despised our friendship; you forced us to enter your kingdom with our + invincible armies. Behold the event. Had you vanquished, I am not ignorant + of the fate which you reserved for myself and my troops. But I disdain to + retaliate: your life and honor are secure; and I shall express my + gratitude to God by my clemency to man." The royal captive showed some + signs of repentance, accepted the humiliation of a robe of honor, and + embraced with tears his son Mousa, who, at his request, was sought and + found among the captives of the field. The Ottoman princes were lodged in + a splendid pavilion; and the respect of the guards could be surpassed only + by their vigilance. On the arrival of the harem from Boursa, Timour + restored the queen Despina and her daughter to their father and husband; + but he piously required, that the Servian princess, who had hitherto been + indulged in the profession of Christianity, should embrace without delay + the religion of the prophet. In the feast of victory, to which Bajazet was + invited, the Mogul emperor placed a crown on his head and a sceptre in his + hand, with a solemn assurance of restoring him with an increase of glory + to the throne of his ancestors. But the effect of his promise was + disappointed by the sultan's untimely death: amidst the care of the most + skilful physicians, he expired of an apoplexy at Akshehr, the Antioch of + Pisidia, about nine months after his defeat. The victor dropped a tear + over his grave: his body, with royal pomp, was conveyed to the mausoleum + which he had erected at Boursa; and his son Mousa, after receiving a rich + present of gold and jewels, of horses and arms, was invested by a patent + in red ink with the kingdom of Anatolia. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-46" id="linkGnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ The scepticism of + Voltaire (Essai sur l'Histoire Générale, c. 88) is ready on this, as on + every occasion, to reject a popular tale, and to diminish the magnitude of + vice and virtue; and on most occasions his incredulity is reasonable.] + </p> + <p> + Such is the portrait of a generous conqueror, which has been extracted + from his own memorials, and dedicated to his son and grandson, nineteen + years after his decease; <a href="#linkGnote-47" name="linkGnoteref-47" + id="linkGnoteref-47">47</a> and, at a time when the truth was remembered + by thousands, a manifest falsehood would have implied a satire on his real + conduct. Weighty indeed is this evidence, adopted by all the Persian + histories; <a href="#linkGnote-48" name="linkGnoteref-48" + id="linkGnoteref-48">48</a> yet flattery, more especially in the East, is + base and audacious; and the harsh and ignominious treatment of Bajazet is + attested by a chain of witnesses, some of whom shall be produced in the + order of their time and country. <i>1.</i> The reader has not forgot the + garrison of French, whom the marshal Boucicault left behind him for the + defence of Constantinople. They were on the spot to receive the earliest + and most faithful intelligence of the overthrow of their great adversary; + and it is more than probable, that some of them accompanied the Greek + embassy to the camp of Tamerlane. From their account, the <i>hardships</i> + of the prison and death of Bajazet are affirmed by the marshal's servant + and historian, within the distance of seven years. <a href="#linkGnote-49" + name="linkGnoteref-49" id="linkGnoteref-49">49</a> <i>2.</i> The name of + Poggius the Italian <a href="#linkGnote-50" name="linkGnoteref-50" + id="linkGnoteref-50">50</a> is deservedly famous among the revivers of + learning in the fifteenth century. His elegant dialogue on the + vicissitudes of fortune <a href="#linkGnote-51" name="linkGnoteref-51" + id="linkGnoteref-51">51</a> was composed in his fiftieth year, + twenty-eight years after the Turkish victory of Tamerlane; <a + href="#linkGnote-52" name="linkGnoteref-52" id="linkGnoteref-52">52</a> + whom he celebrates as not inferior to the illustrious Barbarians of + antiquity. Of his exploits and discipline Poggius was informed by several + ocular witnesses; nor does he forget an example so apposite to his theme + as the Ottoman monarch, whom the Scythian confined like a wild beast in an + iron cage, and exhibited a spectacle to Asia. I might add the authority of + two Italian chronicles, perhaps of an earlier date, which would prove at + least that the same story, whether false or true, was imported into Europe + with the first tidings of the revolution. <a href="#linkGnote-53" + name="linkGnoteref-53" id="linkGnoteref-53">53</a> <i>3.</i> At the time + when Poggius flourished at Rome, Ahmed Ebn Arabshah composed at Damascus + the florid and malevolent history of Timour, for which he had collected + materials in his journeys over Turkey and Tartary. <a href="#linkGnote-54" + name="linkGnoteref-54" id="linkGnoteref-54">54</a> Without any possible + correspondence between the Latin and the Arabian writer, they agree in the + fact of the iron cage; and their agreement is a striking proof of their + common veracity. Ahmed Arabshah likewise relates another outrage, which + Bajazet endured, of a more domestic and tender nature. His indiscreet + mention of women and divorces was deeply resented by the jealous Tartar: + in the feast of victory the wine was served by female cupbearers, and the + sultan beheld his own concubines and wives confounded among the slaves, + and exposed without a veil to the eyes of intemperance. To escape a + similar indignity, it is said that his successors, except in a single + instance, have abstained from legitimate nuptials; and the Ottoman + practice and belief, at least in the sixteenth century, is asserted by the + observing Busbequius, <a href="#linkGnote-55" name="linkGnoteref-55" + id="linkGnoteref-55">55</a> ambassador from the court of Vienna to the + great Soliman. <i>4.</i> Such is the separation of language, that the + testimony of a Greek is not less independent than that of a Latin or an + Arab. I suppress the names of Chalcondyles and Ducas, who flourished in + the latter period, and who speak in a less positive tone; but more + attention is due to George Phranza, <a href="#linkGnote-56" + name="linkGnoteref-56" id="linkGnoteref-56">56</a> protovestiare of the + last emperors, and who was born a year before the battle of Angora. + Twenty-two years after that event, he was sent ambassador to Amurath the + Second; and the historian might converse with some veteran Janizaries, who + had been made prisoners with the sultan, and had themselves seen him in + his iron cage. 5. The last evidence, in every sense, is that of the + Turkish annals, which have been consulted or transcribed by Leunclavius, + Pocock, and Cantemir. <a href="#linkGnote-57" name="linkGnoteref-57" + id="linkGnoteref-57">57</a> They unanimously deplore the captivity of the + iron cage; and some credit may be allowed to national historians, who + cannot stigmatize the Tartar without uncovering the shame of their king + and country. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-47" id="linkGnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ See the History of + Sherefeddin, (l. v. c. 49, 52, 53, 59, 60.) This work was finished at + Shiraz, in the year 1424, and dedicated to Sultan Ibrahim, the son of + Sharokh, the son of Timour, who reigned in Farsistan in his father's + lifetime.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-48" id="linkGnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ After the perusal of + Khondemir, Ebn Schounah, &c., the learned D'Herbelot (Bibliot. + Orientale, p. 882) may affirm, that this fable is not mentioned in the + most authentic histories; but his denial of the visible testimony of + Arabshah leaves some room to suspect his accuracy.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-49" id="linkGnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ Et fut lui-même + (Bajazet) pris, et mené en prison, en laquelle mourut de <i>dure mort!</i> + Mémoires de Boucicault, P. i. c. 37. These Memoirs were composed while the + marshal was still governor of Genoa, from whence he was expelled in the + year 1409, by a popular insurrection, (Muratori, Annali d'Italia, tom. + xii. p. 473, 474.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-50" id="linkGnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ The reader will find a + satisfactory account of the life and writings of Poggius in the Poggiana, + an entertaining work of M. Lenfant, and in the Bibliotheca Latina Mediæ et + Infimæ Ætatis of Fabricius, (tom. v. p. 305—308.) Poggius was born + in the year 1380, and died in 1459.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-51" id="linkGnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ The dialogue de + Varietate Fortunæ, (of which a complete and elegant edition has been + published at Paris in 1723, in 4to.,) was composed a short time before the + death of Pope Martin V., (p. 5,) and consequently about the end of the + year 1430.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-52" id="linkGnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ See a splendid and + eloquent encomium of Tamerlane, p. 36—39 ipse enim novi (says + Poggius) qui fuere in ejus castris.... Regem vivum cepit, caveâque in + modum feræ inclusum per omnem Asian circumtulit egregium admirandumque + spectaculum fortunæ.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-53" id="linkGnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ The Chronicon + Tarvisianum, (in Muratori, Script. Rerum Italicarum tom. xix. p. 800,) and + the Annales Estenses, (tom. xviii. p. 974.) The two authors, Andrea de + Redusiis de Quero, and James de Delayto, were both contemporaries, and + both chancellors, the one of Trevigi, the other of Ferrara. The evidence + of the former is the most positive.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-54" id="linkGnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ See Arabshah, tom. ii. + c. 28, 34. He travelled in regiones Rumæas, A. H. 839, (A.D. 1435, July + 27,) tom. i. c. 2, p. 13.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-55" id="linkGnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ Busbequius in Legatione + Turcicâ, epist. i. p. 52. Yet his respectable authority is somewhat shaken + by the subsequent marriages of Amurath II. with a Servian, and of Mahomet + II. with an Asiatic, princess, (Cantemir, p. 83, 93.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-56" id="linkGnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ See the testimony of + George Phranza, (l. i. c. 29,) and his life in Hanckius (de Script. + Byzant. P. i. c. 40.) Chalcondyles and Ducas speak in general terms of + Bajazet's <i>chains</i>.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-57" id="linkGnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ Annales Leunclav. p. + 321. Pocock, Prolegomen. ad Abulpharag Dynast. Cantemir, p. 55. * Note: + Von Hammer, p. 318, cites several authorities unknown to Gibbon.—M.] + </p> + <p> + From these opposite premises, a fair and moderate conclusion may be + deduced. I am satisfied that Sherefeddin Ali has faithfully described the + first ostentatious interview, in which the conqueror, whose spirits were + harmonized by success, affected the character of generosity. But his mind + was insensibly alienated by the unseasonable arrogance of Bajazet; the + complaints of his enemies, the Anatolian princes, were just and vehement; + and Timour betrayed a design of leading his royal captive in triumph to + Samarcand. An attempt to facilitate his escape, by digging a mine under + the tent, provoked the Mogul emperor to impose a harsher restraint; and in + his perpetual marches, an iron cage on a wagon might be invented, not as a + wanton insult, but as a rigorous precaution. Timour had read in some + fabulous history a similar treatment of one of his predecessors, a king of + Persia; and Bajazet was condemned to represent the person, and expiate the + guilt, of the Roman Cæsar <a href="#linkGnote-58" name="linkGnoteref-58" + id="linkGnoteref-58">58</a> <a href="#linkGnote-581" + name="linkGnoteref-581" id="linkGnoteref-581">581</a> But the strength of + his mind and body fainted under the trial, and his premature death might, + without injustice, be ascribed to the severity of Timour. He warred not + with the dead: a tear and a sepulchre were all that he could bestow on a + captive who was delivered from his power; and if Mousa, the son of + Bajazet, was permitted to reign over the ruins of Boursa, the greatest + part of the province of Anatolia had been restored by the conqueror to + their lawful sovereigns. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-58" id="linkGnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ Sapor, king of Persia, + had been made prisoner, and enclosed in the figure of a cow's hide by + Maximian or Galerius Cæsar. Such is the fable related by Eutychius, + (Annal. tom. i. p. 421, vers. Pocock). The recollection of the true + history (Decline and Fall, &c., vol. ii. p 140—152) will teach + us to appreciate the knowledge of the Orientals of the ages which precede + the Hegira.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-581" id="linkGnote-581"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 581 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-581">return</a>)<br /> [ Von Hammer's + explanation of this contested point is both simple and satisfactory. It + originates in a mistake in the meaning of the Turkish word kafe, which + means a covered litter or palanquin drawn by two horses, and is generally + used to convey the harem of an Eastern monarch. In such a litter, with the + lattice-work made of iron, Bajazet either chose or was constrained to + travel. This was either mistaken for, or transformed by, ignorant relaters + into a cage. The European Schiltberger, the two oldest of the Turkish + historians, and the most valuable of the later compilers, Seadeddin, + describe this litter. Seadeddin discusses the question with some degree of + historical criticism, and ascribes the choice of such a vehicle to the + indignant state of Bajazet's mind, which would not brook the sight of his + Tartar conquerors. Von Hammer, p. 320.—M.] + </p> + <p> + From the Irtish and Volga to the Persian Gulf, and from the Ganges to + Damascus and the Archipelago, Asia was in the hand of Timour: his armies + were invincible, his ambition was boundless, and his zeal might aspire to + conquer and convert the Christian kingdoms of the West, which already + trembled at his name. He touched the utmost verge of the land; but an + insuperable, though narrow, sea rolled between the two continents of + Europe and Asia; <a href="#linkGnote-59" name="linkGnoteref-59" + id="linkGnoteref-59">59</a> and the lord of so many <i>tomans</i>, or + myriads, of horse, was not master of a single galley. The two passages of + the Bosphorus and Hellespont, of Constantinople and Gallipoli, were + possessed, the one by the Christians, the other by the Turks. On this + great occasion, they forgot the difference of religion, to act with union + and firmness in the common cause: the double straits were guarded with + ships and fortifications; and they separately withheld the transports + which Timour demanded of either nation, under the pretence of attacking + their enemy. At the same time, they soothed his pride with tributary gifts + and suppliant embassies, and prudently tempted him to retreat with the + honors of victory. Soliman, the son of Bajazet, implored his clemency for + his father and himself; accepted, by a red patent, the investiture of the + kingdom of Romania, which he already held by the sword; and reiterated his + ardent wish, of casting himself in person at the feet of the king of the + world. The Greek emperor <a href="#linkGnote-60" name="linkGnoteref-60" + id="linkGnoteref-60">60</a> (either John or Manuel) submitted to pay the + same tribute which he had stipulated with the Turkish sultan, and ratified + the treaty by an oath of allegiance, from which he could absolve his + conscience so soon as the Mogul arms had retired from Anatolia. But the + fears and fancy of nations ascribed to the ambitious Tamerlane a new + design of vast and romantic compass; a design of subduing Egypt and + Africa, marching from the Nile to the Atlantic Ocean, entering Europe by + the Straits of Gibraltar, and, after imposing his yoke on the kingdoms of + Christendom, of returning home by the deserts of Russia and Tartary. This + remote, and perhaps imaginary, danger was averted by the submission of the + sultan of Egypt: the honors of the prayer and the coin attested at Cairo + the supremacy of Timour; and a rare gift of a <i>giraffe</i>, or + camelopard, and nine ostriches, represented at Samarcand the tribute of + the African world. Our imagination is not less astonished by the portrait + of a Mogul, who, in his camp before Smyrna, meditates, and almost + accomplishes, the invasion of the Chinese empire. <a href="#linkGnote-61" + name="linkGnoteref-61" id="linkGnoteref-61">61</a> Timour was urged to + this enterprise by national honor and religious zeal. The torrents which + he had shed of Mussulman blood could be expiated only by an equal + destruction of the infidels; and as he now stood at the gates of paradise, + he might best secure his glorious entrance by demolishing the idols of + China, founding mosques in every city, and establishing the profession of + faith in one God, and his prophet Mahomet. The recent expulsion of the + house of Zingis was an insult on the Mogul name; and the disorders of the + empire afforded the fairest opportunity for revenge. The illustrious + Hongvou, founder of the dynasty of <i>Ming</i>, died four years before the + battle of Angora; and his grandson, a weak and unfortunate youth, was + burnt in his palace, after a million of Chinese had perished in the civil + war. <a href="#linkGnote-62" name="linkGnoteref-62" id="linkGnoteref-62">62</a> + Before he evacuated Anatolia, Timour despatched beyond the Sihoon a + numerous army, or rather colony, of his old and new subjects, to open the + road, to subdue the Pagan Calmucks and Mungals, and to found cities and + magazines in the desert; and, by the diligence of his lieutenant, he soon + received a perfect map and description of the unknown regions, from the + source of the Irtish to the wall of China. During these preparations, the + emperor achieved the final conquest of Georgia; passed the winter on the + banks of the Araxes; appeased the troubles of Persia; and slowly returned + to his capital, after a campaign of four years and nine months. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-59" id="linkGnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ Arabshah (tom. ii. c. + 25) describes, like a curious traveller, the Straits of Gallipoli and + Constantinople. To acquire a just idea of these events, I have compared + the narratives and prejudices of the Moguls, Turks, Greeks, and Arabians. + The Spanish ambassador mentions this hostile union of the Christians and + Ottomans, (Vie de Timour, p. 96.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-60" id="linkGnote-60"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 60 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-60">return</a>)<br /> [ Since the name of Cæsar + had been transferred to the sultans of Roum, the Greek princes of + Constantinople (Sherefeddin, l. v. c. 54) were confounded with the + Christian <i>lords</i> of Gallipoli, Thessalonica, &c. under the title + of <i>Tekkur</i>, which is derived by corruption from the genitive tou + kuriou, (Cantemir, p. 51.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-61" id="linkGnote-61"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 61 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-61">return</a>)<br /> [ See Sherefeddin, l. v. + c. 4, who marks, in a just itinerary, the road to China, which Arabshah + (tom. ii. c. 33) paints in vague and rhetorical colors.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-62" id="linkGnote-62"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 62 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-62">return</a>)<br /> [ Synopsis Hist. Sinicæ, + p. 74—76, (in the ivth part of the Relations de Thevenot,) Duhalde, + Hist. de la Chine, (tom. i. p. 507, 508, folio edition;) and for the + Chronology of the Chinese emperors, De Guignes, Hist. des Huns, (tom. i. + p. 71, 72.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkG2HCH0003" id="linkG2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXV: Elevation Of Timour Or Tamerlane, And His Death.—Part + III. + </h2> + <p> + On the throne of Samarcand, <a href="#linkGnote-63" name="linkGnoteref-63" + id="linkGnoteref-63">63</a> he displayed, in a short repose, his + magnificence and power; listened to the complaints of the people; + distributed a just measure of rewards and punishments; employed his riches + in the architecture of palaces and temples; and gave audience to the + ambassadors of Egypt, Arabia, India, Tartary, Russia, and Spain, the last + of whom presented a suit of tapestry which eclipsed the pencil of the + Oriental artists. The marriage of six of the emperor's grandsons was + esteemed an act of religion as well as of paternal tenderness; and the + pomp of the ancient caliphs was revived in their nuptials. They were + celebrated in the gardens of Canighul, decorated with innumerable tents + and pavilions, which displayed the luxury of a great city and the spoils + of a victorious camp. Whole forests were cut down to supply fuel for the + kitchens; the plain was spread with pyramids of meat, and vases of every + liquor, to which thousands of guests were courteously invited: the orders + of the state, and the nations of the earth, were marshalled at the royal + banquet; nor were the ambassadors of Europe (says the haughty Persian) + excluded from the feast; since even the <i>casses</i>, the smallest of + fish, find their place in the ocean. <a href="#linkGnote-64" + name="linkGnoteref-64" id="linkGnoteref-64">64</a> The public joy was + testified by illuminations and masquerades; the trades of Samarcand passed + in review; and every trade was emulous to execute some quaint device, some + marvellous pageant, with the materials of their peculiar art. After the + marriage contracts had been ratified by the cadhis, the bride-grooms and + their brides retired to the nuptial chambers: nine times, according to the + Asiatic fashion, they were dressed and undressed; and at each change of + apparel, pearls and rubies were showered on their heads, and + contemptuously abandoned to their attendants. A general indulgence was + proclaimed: every law was relaxed, every pleasure was allowed; the people + was free, the sovereign was idle; and the historian of Timour may remark, + that, after devoting fifty years to the attainment of empire, the only + happy period of his life were the two months in which he ceased to + exercise his power. But he was soon awakened to the cares of government + and war. The standard was unfurled for the invasion of China: the emirs + made their report of two hundred thousand, the select and veteran soldiers + of Iran and Touran: their baggage and provisions were transported by five + hundred great wagons, and an immense train of horses and camels; and the + troops might prepare for a long absence, since more than six months were + employed in the tranquil journey of a caravan from Samarcand to Pekin. + Neither age, nor the severity of the winter, could retard the impatience + of Timour; he mounted on horseback, passed the Sihoon on the ice, marched + seventy-six parasangs, three hundred miles, from his capital, and pitched + his last camp in the neighborhood of Otrar, where he was expected by the + angel of death. Fatigue, and the indiscreet use of iced water, accelerated + the progress of his fever; and the conqueror of Asia expired in the + seventieth year of his age, thirty-five years after he had ascended the + throne of Zagatai. His designs were lost; his armies were disbanded; China + was saved; and fourteen years after his decease, the most powerful of his + children sent an embassy of friendship and commerce to the court of Pekin. + <a href="#linkGnote-65" name="linkGnoteref-65" id="linkGnoteref-65">65</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-63" id="linkGnote-63"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 63 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-63">return</a>)<br /> [ For the return, triumph, + and death of Timour, see Sherefeddin (l. vi. c. 1—30) and Arabshah, + (tom. ii. c. 36—47.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-64" id="linkGnote-64"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 64 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-64">return</a>)<br /> [ Sherefeddin (l. vi. c. + 24) mentions the ambassadors of one of the most potent sovereigns of + Europe. We know that it was Henry III. king of Castile; and the curious + relation of his two embassies is still extant, (Mariana, Hist. Hispan. l. + xix. c. 11, tom. ii. p. 329, 330. Avertissement à l'Hist. de Timur Bec, p. + 28—33.) There appears likewise to have been some correspondence + between the Mogul emperor and the court of Charles VII. king of France, + (Histoire de France, par Velly et Villaret, tom. xii. p. 336.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-65" id="linkGnote-65"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 65 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-65">return</a>)<br /> [ See the translation of + the Persian account of their embassy, a curious and original piece, (in + the ivth part of the Relations de Thevenot.) They presented the emperor of + China with an old horse which Timour had formerly rode. It was in the year + 1419 that they departed from the court of Herat, to which place they + returned in 1422 from Pekin.] + </p> + <p> + The fame of Timour has pervaded the East and West: his posterity is still + invested with the Imperial <i>title</i>; and the admiration of his + subjects, who revered him almost as a deity, may be justified in some + degree by the praise or confession of his bitterest enemies. <a + href="#linkGnote-66" name="linkGnoteref-66" id="linkGnoteref-66">66</a> + Although he was lame of a hand and foot, his form and stature were not + unworthy of his rank; and his vigorous health, so essential to himself and + to the world, was corroborated by temperance and exercise. In his familiar + discourse he was grave and modest, and if he was ignorant of the Arabic + language, he spoke with fluency and elegance the Persian and Turkish + idioms. It was his delight to converse with the learned on topics of + history and science; and the amusement of his leisure hours was the game + of chess, which he improved or corrupted with new refinements. <a + href="#linkGnote-67" name="linkGnoteref-67" id="linkGnoteref-67">67</a> In + his religion he was a zealous, though not perhaps an orthodox, Mussulman; + <a href="#linkGnote-68" name="linkGnoteref-68" id="linkGnoteref-68">68</a> + but his sound understanding may tempt us to believe, that a superstitious + reverence for omens and prophecies, for saints and astrologers, was only + affected as an instrument of policy. In the government of a vast empire, + he stood alone and absolute, without a rebel to oppose his power, a + favorite to seduce his affections, or a minister to mislead his judgment. + It was his firmest maxim, that whatever might be the consequence, the word + of the prince should never be disputed or recalled; but his foes have + maliciously observed, that the commands of anger and destruction were more + strictly executed than those of beneficence and favor. His sons and + grandsons, of whom Timour left six-and-thirty at his decease, were his + first and most submissive subjects; and whenever they deviated from their + duty, they were corrected, according to the laws of Zingis, with the + bastinade, and afterwards restored to honor and command. Perhaps his heart + was not devoid of the social virtues; perhaps he was not incapable of + loving his friends and pardoning his enemies; but the rules of morality + are founded on the public interest; and it may be sufficient to applaud + the <i>wisdom</i> of a monarch, for the liberality by which he is not + impoverished, and for the justice by which he is strengthened and + enriched. To maintain the harmony of authority and obedience, to chastise + the proud, to protect the weak, to reward the deserving, to banish vice + and idleness from his dominions, to secure the traveller and merchant, to + restrain the depredations of the soldier, to cherish the labors of the + husbandman, to encourage industry and learning, and, by an equal and + moderate assessment, to increase the revenue, without increasing the + taxes, are indeed the duties of a prince; but, in the discharge of these + duties, he finds an ample and immediate recompense. Timour might boast, + that, at his accession to the throne, Asia was the prey of anarchy and + rapine, whilst under his prosperous monarchy a child, fearless and unhurt, + might carry a purse of gold from the East to the West. Such was his + confidence of merit, that from this reformation he derived an excuse for + his victories, and a title to universal dominion. The four following + observations will serve to appreciate his claim to the public gratitude; + and perhaps we shall conclude, that the Mogul emperor was rather the + scourge than the benefactor of mankind. <i>1.</i> If some partial + disorders, some local oppressions, were healed by the sword of Timour, the + remedy was far more pernicious than the disease. By their rapine, cruelty, + and discord, the petty tyrants of Persia might afflict their subjects; but + whole nations were crushed under the footsteps of the reformer. The ground + which had been occupied by flourishing cities was often marked by his + abominable trophies, by columns, or pyramids, of human heads. Astracan, + Carizme, Delhi, Ispahan, Bagdad, Aleppo, Damascus, Boursa, Smyrna, and a + thousand others, were sacked, or burnt, or utterly destroyed, in his + presence, and by his troops: and perhaps his conscience would have been + startled, if a priest or philosopher had dared to number the millions of + victims whom he had sacrificed to the establishment of peace and order. <a + href="#linkGnote-69" name="linkGnoteref-69" id="linkGnoteref-69">69</a> <i>2.</i> + His most destructive wars were rather inroads than conquests. He invaded + Turkestan, Kipzak, Russia, Hindostan, Syria, Anatolia, Armenia, and + Georgia, without a hope or a desire of preserving those distant provinces. + From thence he departed laden with spoil; but he left behind him neither + troops to awe the contumacious, nor magistrates to protect the obedient, + natives. When he had broken the fabric of their ancient government, he + abandoned them to the evils which his invasion had aggravated or caused; + nor were these evils compensated by any present or possible benefits. <i>3.</i> + The kingdoms of Transoxiana and Persia were the proper field which he + labored to cultivate and adorn, as the perpetual inheritance of his + family. But his peaceful labors were often interrupted, and sometimes + blasted, by the absence of the conqueror. While he triumphed on the Volga + or the Ganges, his servants, and even his sons, forgot their master and + their duty. The public and private injuries were poorly redressed by the + tardy rigor of inquiry and punishment; and we must be content to praise + the <i>Institutions</i> of Timour, as the specious idea of a perfect + monarchy. <i>4.</i> Whatsoever might be the blessings of his + administration, they evaporated with his life. To reign, rather than to + govern, was the ambition of his children and grandchildren; <a + href="#linkGnote-70" name="linkGnoteref-70" id="linkGnoteref-70">70</a> + the enemies of each other and of the people. A fragment of the empire was + upheld with some glory by Sharokh, his youngest son; but after <i>his</i> + decease, the scene was again involved in darkness and blood; and before + the end of a century, Transoxiana and Persia were trampled by the Uzbeks + from the north, and the Turkmans of the black and white sheep. The race of + Timour would have been extinct, if a hero, his descendant in the fifth + degree, had not fled before the Uzbek arms to the conquest of Hindostan. + His successors (the great Moguls <a href="#linkGnote-71" + name="linkGnoteref-71" id="linkGnoteref-71">71</a>) extended their sway + from the mountains of Cashmir to Cape Comorin, and from Candahar to the + Gulf of Bengal. Since the reign of Aurungzebe, their empire had been + dissolved; their treasures of Delhi have been rifled by a Persian robber; + and the richest of their kingdoms is now possessed by a company of + Christian merchants, of a remote island in the Northern Ocean. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-66" id="linkGnote-66"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 66 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-66">return</a>)<br /> [ From Arabshah, tom. ii. + c. 96. The bright or softer colors are borrowed from Sherefeddin, + D'Herbelot, and the Institutions.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-67" id="linkGnote-67"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 67 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-67">return</a>)<br /> [ His new system was + multiplied from 32 pieces and 64 squares to 56 pieces and 110 or 130 + squares; but, except in his court, the old game has been thought + sufficiently elaborate. The Mogul emperor was rather pleased than hurt + with the victory of a subject: a chess player will feel the value of this + encomium!] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-68" id="linkGnote-68"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 68 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-68">return</a>)<br /> [ See Sherefeddin, (l. v. + c. 15, 25. Arabshah tom. ii. c. 96, p. 801, 803) approves the impiety of + Timour and the Moguls, who almost preferred to the Koran the <i>Yacsa</i>, + or Law of Zingis, (cui Deus maledicat;) nor will he believe that Sharokh + had abolished the use and authority of that Pagan code.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-69" id="linkGnote-69"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 69 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-69">return</a>)<br /> [ Besides the bloody + passages of this narrative, I must refer to an anticipation in the third + volume of the Decline and Fall, which in a single Gnote (p. 234, Gnote 25) + accumulates nearly 300,000 heads of the monuments of his cruelty. Except + in Rowe's play on the fifth of November, I did not expect to hear of + Timour's amiable moderation (White's preface, p. 7.) Yet I can excuse a + generous enthusiasm in the reader, and still more in the editor, of the <i>Institutions</i>.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-70" id="linkGnote-70"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 70 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-70">return</a>)<br /> [ Consult the last + chapters of Sherefeddin and Arabshah, and M. De Guignes, (Hist. des Huns, + tom. iv. l. xx.) Fraser's History of Nadir Shah, (p. 1—62.) The + story of Timour's descendants is imperfectly told; and the second and + third parts of Sherefeddin are unknown.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-71" id="linkGnote-71"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 71 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-71">return</a>)<br /> [ Shah Allum, the present + Mogul, is in the fourteenth degree from Timour, by Miran Shah, his third + son. See the second volume of Dow's History of Hindostan.] + </p> + <p> + Far different was the fate of the Ottoman monarchy. The massy trunk was + bent to the ground, but no sooner did the hurricane pass away, than it + again rose with fresh vigor and more lively vegetation. When Timour, in + every sense, had evacuated Anatolia, he left the cities without a palace, + a treasure, or a king. The open country was overspread with hordes of + shepherds and robbers of Tartar or Turkman origin; the recent conquests of + Bajazet were restored to the emirs, one of whom, in base revenge, + demolished his sepulchre; and his five sons were eager, by civil discord, + to consume the remnant of their patrimony. I shall enumerate their names + in the order of their age and actions. <a href="#linkGnote-72" + name="linkGnoteref-72" id="linkGnoteref-72">72</a> <i>1.</i> It is + doubtful, whether I relate the story of the true <i>Mustapha</i>, or of an + impostor who personated that lost prince. He fought by his father's side + in the battle of Angora: but when the captive sultan was permitted to + inquire for his children, Mousa alone could be found; and the Turkish + historians, the slaves of the triumphant faction, are persuaded that his + brother was confounded among the slain. If Mustapha escaped from that + disastrous field, he was concealed twelve years from his friends and + enemies; till he emerged in Thessaly, and was hailed by a numerous party, + as the son and successor of Bajazet. His first defeat would have been his + last, had not the true, or false, Mustapha been saved by the Greeks, and + restored, after the decease of his brother Mahomet, to liberty and empire. + A degenerate mind seemed to argue his spurious birth; and if, on the + throne of Adrianople, he was adored as the Ottoman sultan, his flight, his + fetters, and an ignominious gibbet, delivered the impostor to popular + contempt. A similar character and claim was asserted by several rival + pretenders: thirty persons are said to have suffered under the name of + Mustapha; and these frequent executions may perhaps insinuate, that the + Turkish court was not perfectly secure of the death of the lawful prince. + <i>2.</i> After his father's captivity, Isa <a href="#linkGnote-73" + name="linkGnoteref-73" id="linkGnoteref-73">73</a> reigned for some time + in the neighborhood of Angora, Sinope, and the Black Sea; and his + ambassadors were dismissed from the presence of Timour with fair promises + and honorable gifts. But their master was soon deprived of his province + and life, by a jealous brother, the sovereign of Amasia; and the final + event suggested a pious allusion, that the law of Moses and Jesus, of <i>Isa</i> + and <i>Mousa</i>, had been abrogated by the greater Mahomet. <i>3.</i> <i>Soliman</i> + is not numbered in the list of the Turkish emperors: yet he checked the + victorious progress of the Moguls; and after their departure, united for a + while the thrones of Adrianople and Boursa. In war he was brave, active, + and fortunate; his courage was softened by clemency; but it was likewise + inflamed by presumption, and corrupted by intemperance and idleness. He + relaxed the nerves of discipline, in a government where either the subject + or the sovereign must continually tremble: his vices alienated the chiefs + of the army and the law; and his daily drunkenness, so contemptible in a + prince and a man, was doubly odious in a disciple of the prophet. In the + slumber of intoxication he was surprised by his brother Mousa; and as he + fled from Adrianople towards the Byzantine capital, Soliman was overtaken + and slain in a bath, <a href="#linkGnote-731" name="linkGnoteref-731" + id="linkGnoteref-731">731</a> after a reign of seven years and ten months. + <i>4.</i> The investiture of Mousa degraded him as the slave of the + Moguls: his tributary kingdom of Anatolia was confined within a narrow + limit, nor could his broken militia and empty treasury contend with the + hardy and veteran bands of the sovereign of Romania. Mousa fled in + disguise from the palace of Boursa; traversed the Propontis in an open + boat; wandered over the Walachian and Servian hills; and after some vain + attempts, ascended the throne of Adrianople, so recently stained with the + blood of Soliman. In a reign of three years and a half, his troops were + victorious against the Christians of Hungary and the Morea; but Mousa was + ruined by his timorous disposition and unseasonable clemency. After + resigning the sovereignty of Anatolia, he fell a victim to the perfidy of + his ministers, and the superior ascendant of his brother Mahomet. <i>5.</i>The + final victory of Mahomet was the just recompense of his prudence and + moderation. Before his father's captivity, the royal youth had been + intrusted with the government of Amasia, thirty days' journey from + Constantinople, and the Turkish frontier against the Christians of + Trebizond and Georgia. The castle, in Asiatic warfare, was esteemed + impregnable; and the city of Amasia, <a href="#linkGnote-74" + name="linkGnoteref-74" id="linkGnoteref-74">74</a> which is equally + divided by the River Iris, rises on either side in the form of an + amphitheatre, and represents on a smaller scale the image of Bagdad. In + his rapid career, Timour appears to have overlooked this obscure and + contumacious angle of Anatolia; and Mahomet, without provoking the + conqueror, maintained his silent independence, and chased from the + province the last stragglers of the Tartar host. <a href="#linkGnote-741" + name="linkGnoteref-741" id="linkGnoteref-741">741</a> He relieved himself + from the dangerous neighborhood of Isa; but in the contests of their more + powerful brethren his firm neutrality was respected; till, after the + triumph of Mousa, he stood forth the heir and avenger of the unfortunate + Soliman. Mahomet obtained Anatolia by treaty, and Romania by arms; and the + soldier who presented him with the head of Mousa was rewarded as the + benefactor of his king and country. The eight years of his sole and + peaceful reign were usefully employed in banishing the vices of civil + discord, and restoring on a firmer basis the fabric of the Ottoman + monarchy. His last care was the choice of two viziers, Bajazet and + Ibrahim, <a href="#linkGnote-75" name="linkGnoteref-75" + id="linkGnoteref-75">75</a> who might guide the youth of his son Amurath; + and such was their union and prudence, that they concealed above forty + days the emperor's death, till the arrival of his successor in the palace + of Boursa. A new war was kindled in Europe by the prince, or impostor, + Mustapha; the first vizier lost his army and his head; but the more + fortunate Ibrahim, whose name and family are still revered, extinguished + the last pretender to the throne of Bajazet, and closed the scene of + domestic hostility. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-72" id="linkGnote-72"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 72 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-72">return</a>)<br /> [ The civil wars, from the + death of Bajazet to that of Mustapha, are related, according to the Turks, + by Demetrius Cantemir, (p. 58—82.) Of the Greeks, Chalcondyles, (l. + iv. and v.,) Phranza, (l. i. c. 30—32,) and Ducas, (c. 18—27,) + the last is the most copious and best informed.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-73" id="linkGnote-73"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 73 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-73">return</a>)<br /> [ Arabshah, (tom. ii. c. + 26,) whose testimony on this occasion is weighty and valuable. The + existence of Isa (unknown to the Turks) is likewise confirmed by + Sherefeddin, (l. v. c. 57.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-731" id="linkGnote-731"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 731 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-731">return</a>)<br /> [ He escaped from the + bath, and fled towards Constantinople. Five mothers from a village, + Dugundschi, whose inhabitants had suffered severely from the exactions of + his officers, recognized and followed him. Soliman shot two of them, the + others discharged their arrows in their turn the sultan fell and his head + was cut off. V. Hammer, vol. i. p. 349.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-74" id="linkGnote-74"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 74 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-74">return</a>)<br /> [ Arabshah, loc. citat. + Abulfeda, Geograph. tab. xvii. p. 302. Busbequius, epist. i. p. 96, 97, in + Itinere C. P. et Amasiano.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-741" id="linkGnote-741"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 741 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-741">return</a>)<br /> [ See his nine battles. + V. Hammer, p. 339.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-75" id="linkGnote-75"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 75 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-75">return</a>)<br /> [ The virtues of Ibrahim + are praised by a contemporary Greek, (Ducas, c. 25.) His descendants are + the sole nobles in Turkey: they content themselves with the administration + of his pious foundations, are excused from public offices, and receive two + annual visits from the sultan, (Cantemir, p. 76.)] + </p> + <p> + In these conflicts, the wisest Turks, and indeed the body of the nation, + were strongly attached to the unity of the empire; and Romania and + Anatolia, so often torn asunder by private ambition, were animated by a + strong and invincible tendency of cohesion. Their efforts might have + instructed the Christian powers; and had they occupied, with a confederate + fleet, the Straits of Gallipoli, the Ottomans, at least in Europe, must + have been speedily annihilated. But the schism of the West, and the + factions and wars of France and England, diverted the Latins from this + generous enterprise: they enjoyed the present respite, without a thought + of futurity; and were often tempted by a momentary interest to serve the + common enemy of their religion. A colony of Genoese, <a + href="#linkGnote-76" name="linkGnoteref-76" id="linkGnoteref-76">76</a> + which had been planted at Phocæa <a href="#linkGnote-77" + name="linkGnoteref-77" id="linkGnoteref-77">77</a> on the Ionian coast, + was enriched by the lucrative monopoly of alum; <a href="#linkGnote-78" + name="linkGnoteref-78" id="linkGnoteref-78">78</a> and their tranquillity, + under the Turkish empire, was secured by the annual payment of tribute. In + the last civil war of the Ottomans, the Genoese governor, Adorno, a bold + and ambitious youth, embraced the party of Amurath; and undertook, with + seven stout galleys, to transport him from Asia to Europe. The sultan and + five hundred guards embarked on board the admiral's ship; which was manned + by eight hundred of the bravest Franks. His life and liberty were in their + hands; nor can we, without reluctance, applaud the fidelity of Adorno, + who, in the midst of the passage, knelt before him, and gratefully + accepted a discharge of his arrears of tribute. They landed in sight of + Mustapha and Gallipoli; two thousand Italians, armed with lances and + battle-axes, attended Amurath to the conquest of Adrianople; and this + venal service was soon repaid by the ruin of the commerce and colony of + Phocæa. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-76" id="linkGnote-76"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 76 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-76">return</a>)<br /> [ See Pachymer, (l. v. c. + 29,) Nicephorus Gregoras, (l. ii. c. 1,) Sherefeddin, (l. v. c. 57,) and + Ducas, (c. 25.) The last of these, a curious and careful observer, is + entitled, from his birth and station, to particular credit in all that + concerns Ionia and the islands. Among the nations that resorted to New + Phocæa, he mentions the English; ('Igglhnoi;) an early evidence of + Mediterranean trade.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-77" id="linkGnote-77"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 77 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-77">return</a>)<br /> [ For the spirit of + navigation, and freedom of ancient Phocæa, or rather the Phocæans, consult + the first book of Herodotus, and the Geographical Index of his last and + learned French translator, M. Larcher (tom. vii. p. 299.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-78" id="linkGnote-78"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 78 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-78">return</a>)<br /> [ Phocæa is not enumerated + by Pliny (Hist. Nat. xxxv. 52) among the places productive of alum: he + reckons Egypt as the first, and for the second the Isle of Melos, whose + alum mines are described by Tournefort, (tom. i. lettre iv.,) a traveller + and a naturalist. After the loss of Phocæa, the Genoese, in 1459, found + that useful mineral in the Isle of Ischia, (Ismael. Bouillaud, ad Ducam, + c. 25.)] + </p> + <p> + If Timour had generously marched at the request, and to the relief, of the + Greek emperor, he might be entitled to the praise and gratitude of the + Christians. <a href="#linkGnote-79" name="linkGnoteref-79" + id="linkGnoteref-79">79</a> But a Mussulman, who carried into Georgia the + sword of persecution, and respected the holy warfare of Bajazet, was not + disposed to pity or succor the <i>idolaters</i> of Europe. The Tartar + followed the impulse of ambition; and the deliverance of Constantinople + was the accidental consequence. When Manuel abdicated the government, it + was his prayer, rather than his hope, that the ruin of the church and + state might be delayed beyond his unhappy days; and after his return from + a western pilgrimage, he expected every hour the news of the sad + catastrophe. On a sudden, he was astonished and rejoiced by the + intelligence of the retreat, the overthrow, and the captivity of the + Ottoman. Manuel <a href="#linkGnote-80" name="linkGnoteref-80" + id="linkGnoteref-80">80</a> immediately sailed from Modon in the Morea; + ascended the throne of Constantinople, and dismissed his blind competitor + to an easy exile in the Isle of Lesbos. The ambassadors of the son of + Bajazet were soon introduced to his presence; but their pride was fallen, + their tone was modest: they were awed by the just apprehension, lest the + Greeks should open to the Moguls the gates of Europe. Soliman saluted the + emperor by the name of father; solicited at his hands the government or + gift of Romania; and promised to deserve his favor by inviolable + friendship, and the restitution of Thessalonica, with the most important + places along the Strymon, the Propontis, and the Black Sea. The alliance + of Soliman exposed the emperor to the enmity and revenge of Mousa: the + Turks appeared in arms before the gates of Constantinople; but they were + repulsed by sea and land; and unless the city was guarded by some foreign + mercenaries, the Greeks must have wondered at their own triumph. But, + instead of prolonging the division of the Ottoman powers, the policy or + passion of Manuel was tempted to assist the most formidable of the sons of + Bajazet. He concluded a treaty with Mahomet, whose progress was checked by + the insuperable barrier of Gallipoli: the sultan and his troops were + transported over the Bosphorus; he was hospitably entertained in the + capital; and his successful sally was the first step to the conquest of + Romania. The ruin was suspended by the prudence and moderation of the + conqueror: he faithfully discharged his own obligations and those of + Soliman, respected the laws of gratitude and peace; and left the emperor + guardian of his two younger sons, in the vain hope of saving them from the + jealous cruelty of their brother Amurath. But the execution of his last + testament would have offended the national honor and religion; and the + divan unanimously pronounced, that the royal youths should never be + abandoned to the custody and education of a Christian dog. On this + refusal, the Byzantine councils were divided; but the age and caution of + Manuel yielded to the presumption of his son John; and they unsheathed a + dangerous weapon of revenge, by dismissing the true or false Mustapha, who + had long been detained as a captive and hostage, and for whose maintenance + they received an annual pension of three hundred thousand aspers. <a + href="#linkGnote-81" name="linkGnoteref-81" id="linkGnoteref-81">81</a> At + the door of his prison, Mustapha subscribed to every proposal; and the + keys of Gallipoli, or rather of Europe, were stipulated as the price of + his deliverance. But no sooner was he seated on the throne of Romania, + than he dismissed the Greek ambassadors with a smile of contempt, + declaring, in a pious tone, that, at the day of judgment, he would rather + answer for the violation of an oath, than for the surrender of a Mussulman + city into the hands of the infidels. The emperor was at once the enemy of + the two rivals; from whom he had sustained, and to whom he had offered, an + injury; and the victory of Amurath was followed, in the ensuing spring, by + the siege of Constantinople. <a href="#linkGnote-82" name="linkGnoteref-82" + id="linkGnoteref-82">82</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-79" id="linkGnote-79"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 79 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-79">return</a>)<br /> [ The writer who has the + most abused this fabulous generosity, is our ingenious Sir William Temple, + (his Works, vol. iii. p. 349, 350, octavo edition,) that lover of exotic + virtue. After the conquest of Russia, &c., and the passage of the + Danube, his Tartar hero relieves, visits, admires, and refuses the city of + Constantine. His flattering pencil deviates in every line from the truth + of history; yet his pleasing fictions are more excusable than the gross + errors of Cantemir.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-80" id="linkGnote-80"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 80 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-80">return</a>)<br /> [ For the reigns of Manuel + and John, of Mahomet I. and Amurath II., see the Othman history of + Cantemir, (p. 70—95,) and the three Greeks, Chalcondyles, Phranza, + and Ducas, who is still superior to his rivals.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-81" id="linkGnote-81"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 81 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-81">return</a>)<br /> [ The Turkish asper (from + the Greek asproV) is, or was, a piece of <i>white</i> or silver money, at + present much debased, but which was formerly equivalent to the 54th part, + at least, of a Venetian ducat or sequin; and the 300,000 aspers, a + princely allowance or royal tribute, may be computed at 2500<i>l</i>. + sterling, (Leunclav. Pandect. Turc. p. 406—408.) * Note: According + to Von Hammer, this calculation is much too low. The asper was a century + before the time of which writes, the tenth part of a ducat; for the same + tribute which the Byzantine writers state at 300,000 aspers the Ottomans + state at 30,000 ducats, about 15000l Note, vol. p. 636.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-82" id="linkGnote-82"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 82 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-82">return</a>)<br /> [ For the siege of + Constantinople in 1422, see the particular and contemporary narrative of + John Cananus, published by Leo Allatius, at the end of his edition of + Acropolita, (p. 188—199.)] + </p> + <p> + The religious merit of subduing the city of the Cæsars attracted from Asia + a crowd of volunteers, who aspired to the crown of martyrdom: their + military ardor was inflamed by the promise of rich spoils and beautiful + females; and the sultan's ambition was consecrated by the presence and + prediction of Seid Bechar, a descendant of the prophet, <a + href="#linkGnote-83" name="linkGnoteref-83" id="linkGnoteref-83">83</a> + who arrived in the camp, on a mule, with a venerable train of five hundred + disciples. But he might blush, if a fanatic could blush, at the failure of + his assurances. The strength of the walls resisted an army of two hundred + thousand Turks; their assaults were repelled by the sallies of the Greeks + and their foreign mercenaries; the old resources of defence were opposed + to the new engines of attack; and the enthusiasm of the dervis, who was + snatched to heaven in visionary converse with Mahomet, was answered by the + credulity of the Christians, who <i>beheld</i> the Virgin Mary, in a + violet garment, walking on the rampart and animating their courage. <a + href="#linkGnote-84" name="linkGnoteref-84" id="linkGnoteref-84">84</a> + After a siege of two months, Amurath was recalled to Boursa by a domestic + revolt, which had been kindled by Greek treachery, and was soon + extinguished by the death of a guiltless brother. While he led his + Janizaries to new conquests in Europe and Asia, the Byzantine empire was + indulged in a servile and precarious respite of thirty years. Manuel sank + into the grave; and John Palæologus was permitted to reign, for an annual + tribute of three hundred thousand aspers, and the dereliction of almost + all that he held beyond the suburbs of Constantinople. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-83" id="linkGnote-83"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 83 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-83">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantemir, p. 80. + Cananus, who describes Seid Bechar, without naming him, supposes that the + friend of Mahomet assumed in his amours the privilege of a prophet, and + that the fairest of the Greek nuns were promised to the saint and his + disciples.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-84" id="linkGnote-84"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 84 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-84">return</a>)<br /> [ For this miraculous + apparition, Cananus appeals to the Mussulman saint; but who will bear + testimony for Seid Bechar?] + </p> + <p> + In the establishment and restoration of the Turkish empire, the first + merit must doubtless be assigned to the personal qualities of the sultans; + since, in human life, the most important scenes will depend on the + character of a single actor. By some shades of wisdom and virtue, they may + be discriminated from each other; but, except in a single instance, a + period of nine reigns, and two hundred and sixty-five years, is occupied, + from the elevation of Othman to the death of Soliman, by a rare series of + warlike and active princes, who impressed their subjects with obedience + and their enemies with terror. Instead of the slothful luxury of the + seraglio, the heirs of royalty were educated in the council and the field: + from early youth they were intrusted by their fathers with the command of + provinces and armies; and this manly institution, which was often + productive of civil war, must have essentially contributed to the + discipline and vigor of the monarchy. The Ottomans cannot style + themselves, like the Arabian caliphs, the descendants or successors of the + apostle of God; and the kindred which they claim with the Tartar khans of + the house of Zingis appears to be founded in flattery rather than in + truth. <a href="#linkGnote-85" name="linkGnoteref-85" id="linkGnoteref-85">85</a> + Their origin is obscure; but their sacred and indefeasible right, which no + time can erase, and no violence can infringe, was soon and unalterably + implanted in the minds of their subjects. A weak or vicious sultan may be + deposed and strangled; but his inheritance devolves to an infant or an + idiot: nor has the most daring rebel presumed to ascend the throne of his + lawful sovereign. <a href="#linkGnote-86" name="linkGnoteref-86" + id="linkGnoteref-86">86</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-85" id="linkGnote-85"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 85 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-85">return</a>)<br /> [ See Ricaut, (l. i. c. + 13.) The Turkish sultans assume the title of khan. Yet Abulghazi is + ignorant of his Ottoman cousins.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-86" id="linkGnote-86"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 86 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-86">return</a>)<br /> [ The third grand vizier + of the name of Kiuperli, who was slain at the battle of Salankanen in + 1691, (Cantemir, p. 382,) presumed to say that all the successors of + Soliman had been fools or tyrants, and that it was time to abolish the + race, (Marsigli Stato Militaire, &c., p. 28.) This political heretic + was a good Whig, and justified against the French ambassador the + revolution of England, (Mignot, Hist. des Ottomans, tom. iii. p. 434.) His + presumption condemns the singular exception of continuing offices in the + same family.] + </p> + <p> + While the transient dynasties of Asia have been continually subverted by a + crafty vizier in the palace, or a victorious general in the camp, the + Ottoman succession has been confirmed by the practice of five centuries, + and is now incorporated with the vital principle of the Turkish nation. + </p> + <p> + To the spirit and constitution of that nation, a strong and singular + influence may, however, be ascribed. The primitive subjects of Othman were + the four hundred families of wandering Turkmans, who had followed his + ancestors from the Oxus to the Sangar; and the plains of Anatolia are + still covered with the white and black tents of their rustic brethren. But + this original drop was dissolved in the mass of voluntary and vanquished + subjects, who, under the name of Turks, are united by the common ties of + religion, language, and manners. In the cities, from Erzeroum to Belgrade, + that national appellation is common to all the Moslems, the first and most + honorable inhabitants; but they have abandoned, at least in Romania, the + villages, and the cultivation of the land, to the Christian peasants. In + the vigorous age of the Ottoman government, the Turks were themselves + excluded from all civil and military honors; and a servile class, an + artificial people, was raised by the discipline of education to obey, to + conquer, and to command. <a href="#linkGnote-87" name="linkGnoteref-87" + id="linkGnoteref-87">87</a> From the time of Orchan and the first Amurath, + the sultans were persuaded that a government of the sword must be renewed + in each generation with new soldiers; and that such soldiers must be + sought, not in effeminate Asia, but among the hardy and warlike natives of + Europe. The provinces of Thrace, Macedonia, Albania, Bulgaria, and Servia, + became the perpetual seminary of the Turkish army; and when the royal + fifth of the captives was diminished by conquest, an inhuman tax of the + fifth child, or of every fifth year, was rigorously levied on the + Christian families. At the age of twelve or fourteen years, the most + robust youths were torn from their parents; their names were enrolled in a + book; and from that moment they were clothed, taught, and maintained, for + the public service. According to the promise of their appearance, they + were selected for the royal schools of Boursa, Pera, and Adrianople, + intrusted to the care of the bashaws, or dispersed in the houses of the + Anatolian peasantry. It was the first care of their masters to instruct + them in the Turkish language: their bodies were exercised by every labor + that could fortify their strength; they learned to wrestle, to leap, to + run, to shoot with the bow, and afterwards with the musket; till they were + drafted into the chambers and companies of the Janizaries, and severely + trained in the military or monastic discipline of the order. The youths + most conspicuous for birth, talents, and beauty, were admitted into the + inferior class of <i>Agiamoglans</i>, or the more liberal rank of <i>Ichoglans</i>, + of whom the former were attached to the palace, and the latter to the + person, of the prince. In four successive schools, under the rod of the + white eunuchs, the arts of horsemanship and of darting the javelin were + their daily exercise, while those of a more studious cast applied + themselves to the study of the Koran, and the knowledge of the Arabic and + Persian tongues. As they advanced in seniority and merit, they were + gradually dismissed to military, civil, and even ecclesiastical + employments: the longer their stay, the higher was their expectation; + till, at a mature period, they were admitted into the number of the forty + agas, who stood before the sultan, and were promoted by his choice to the + government of provinces and the first honors of the empire. <a + href="#linkGnote-88" name="linkGnoteref-88" id="linkGnoteref-88">88</a> + Such a mode of institution was admirably adapted to the form and spirit of + a despotic monarchy. The ministers and generals were, in the strictest + sense, the slaves of the emperor, to whose bounty they were indebted for + their instruction and support. When they left the seraglio, and suffered + their beards to grow as the symbol of enfranchisement, they found + themselves in an important office, without faction or friendship, without + parents and without heirs, dependent on the hand which had raised them + from the dust, and which, on the slightest displeasure, could break in + pieces these statues of glass, as they were aptly termed by the Turkish + proverb. <a href="#linkGnote-89" name="linkGnoteref-89" + id="linkGnoteref-89">89</a> In the slow and painful steps of education, + their characters and talents were unfolded to a discerning eye: the <i>man</i>, + naked and alone, was reduced to the standard of his personal merit; and, + if the sovereign had wisdom to choose, he possessed a pure and boundless + liberty of choice. The Ottoman candidates were trained by the virtues of + abstinence to those of action; by the habits of submission to those of + command. A similar spirit was diffused among the troops; and their silence + and sobriety, their patience and modesty, have extorted the reluctant + praise of their Christian enemies. <a href="#linkGnote-90" + name="linkGnoteref-90" id="linkGnoteref-90">90</a> Nor can the victory + appear doubtful, if we compare the discipline and exercise of the + Janizaries with the pride of birth, the independence of chivalry, the + ignorance of the new levies, the mutinous temper of the veterans, and the + vices of intemperance and disorder, which so long contaminated the armies + of Europe. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-87" id="linkGnote-87"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 87 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-87">return</a>)<br /> [ Chalcondyles (l. v.) and + Ducas (c. 23) exhibit the rude lineament of the Ottoman policy, and the + transmutation of Christian children into Turkish soldiers.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-88" id="linkGnote-88"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 88 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-88">return</a>)<br /> [ This sketch of the + Turkish education and discipline is chiefly borrowed from Ricaut's State + of the Ottoman Empire, the Stato Militaire del' Imperio Ottomano of Count + Marsigli, (in Haya, 1732, in folio,) and a description of the Seraglio, + approved by Mr. Greaves himself, a curious traveller, and inserted in the + second volume of his works.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-89" id="linkGnote-89"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 89 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-89">return</a>)<br /> [ From the series of cxv. + viziers, till the siege of Vienna, (Marsigli, p. 13,) their place may be + valued at three years and a half purchase.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-90" id="linkGnote-90"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 90 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-90">return</a>)<br /> [ See the entertaining and + judicious letters of Busbequius.] + </p> + <p> + The only hope of salvation for the Greek empire, and the adjacent + kingdoms, would have been some more powerful weapon, some discovery in the + art of war, that would give them a decisive superiority over their Turkish + foes. Such a weapon was in their hands; such a discovery had been made in + the critical moment of their fate. The chemists of China or Europe had + found, by casual or elaborate experiments, that a mixture of saltpetre, + sulphur, and charcoal, produces, with a spark of fire, a tremendous + explosion. It was soon observed, that if the expansive force were + compressed in a strong tube, a ball of stone or iron might be expelled + with irresistible and destructive velocity. The precise æra of the + invention and application of gunpowder <a href="#linkGnote-91" + name="linkGnoteref-91" id="linkGnoteref-91">91</a> is involved in doubtful + traditions and equivocal language; yet we may clearly discern, that it was + known before the middle of the fourteenth century; and that before the end + of the same, the use of artillery in battles and sieges, by sea and land, + was familiar to the states of Germany, Italy, Spain, France, and England. + <a href="#linkGnote-92" name="linkGnoteref-92" id="linkGnoteref-92">92</a> + The priority of nations is of small account; none could derive any + exclusive benefit from their previous or superior knowledge; and in the + common improvement, they stood on the same level of relative power and + military science. Nor was it possible to circumscribe the secret within + the pale of the church; it was disclosed to the Turks by the treachery of + apostates and the selfish policy of rivals; and the sultans had sense to + adopt, and wealth to reward, the talents of a Christian engineer. The + Genoese, who transported Amurath into Europe, must be accused as his + preceptors; and it was probably by their hands that his cannon was cast + and directed at the siege of Constantinople. <a href="#linkGnote-93" + name="linkGnoteref-93" id="linkGnoteref-93">93</a> The first attempt was + indeed unsuccessful; but in the general warfare of the age, the advantage + was on <i>their</i> side, who were most commonly the assailants: for a + while the proportion of the attack and defence was suspended; and this + thundering artillery was pointed against the walls and towers which had + been erected only to resist the less potent engines of antiquity. By the + Venetians, the use of gunpowder was communicated without reproach to the + sultans of Egypt and Persia, their allies against the Ottoman power; the + secret was soon propagated to the extremities of Asia; and the advantage + of the European was confined to his easy victories over the savages of the + new world. If we contrast the rapid progress of this mischievous discovery + with the slow and laborious advances of reason, science, and the arts of + peace, a philosopher, according to his temper, will laugh or weep at the + folly of mankind. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-91" id="linkGnote-91"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 91 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-91">return</a>)<br /> [ The first and second + volumes of Dr. Watson's Chemical Essays contain two valuable discourses on + the discovery and composition of gunpowder.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-92" id="linkGnote-92"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 92 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-92">return</a>)<br /> [ On this subject modern + testimonies cannot be trusted. The original passages are collected by + Ducange, (Gloss. Latin. tom. i. p. 675, <i>Bombarda</i>.) But in the early + doubtful twilight, the name, sound, fire, and effect, that seem to express + <i>our</i> artillery, may be fairly interpreted of the old engines and the + Greek fire. For the English cannon at Crecy, the authority of John Villani + (Chron. l. xii. c. 65) must be weighed against the silence of Froissard. + Yet Muratori (Antiquit. Italiæ Medii Ævi, tom. ii. Dissert. xxvi. p. 514, + 515) has produced a decisive passage from Petrarch, (De Remediis utriusque + Fortunæ Dialog.,) who, before the year 1344, execrates this terrestrial + thunder, <i>nuper</i> rara, <i>nunc</i> communis. * Note: Mr. Hallam makes + the following observation on the objection thrown our by Gibbon: "The + positive testimony of Villani, who died within two years afterwards, and + had manifestly obtained much information as to the great events passing in + France, cannot be rejected. He ascribes a material effect to the cannon of + Edward, Colpi delle bombarde, which I suspect, from his strong + expressions, had not been employed before, except against stone walls. It + seems, he says, as if God thundered con grande uccisione di genti e + efondamento di cavalli." Middle Ages, vol. i. p. 510.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkGnote-93" id="linkGnote-93"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 93 (<a href="#linkGnoteref-93">return</a>)<br /> [ The Turkish cannon, + which Ducas (c. 30) first introduces before Belgrade, (A.D. 1436,) is + mentioned by Chalcondyles (l. v. p. 123) in 1422, at the siege of + Constantinople.] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> ===================== <a name="linkH2HCH0001" + id="linkH2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + Chapter LXVI: Union Of The Greek And Latin Churches.—Part I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Applications Of The Eastern Emperors To The Popes.—Visits + To The West, Of John The First, Manuel, And John The Second, + Palæologus.—Union Of The Greek And Latin Churches, Promoted + By The Council Of Basil, And Concluded At Ferrara And + Florence.—State Of Literature At Constantinople.—Its + Revival In Italy By The Greek Fugitives.—Curiosity And + Emulation Of The Latins. +</pre> + <p> + In the four last centuries of the Greek emperors, their friendly or + hostile aspect towards the pope and the Latins may be observed as the + thermometer of their prosperity or distress; as the scale of the rise and + fall of the Barbarian dynasties. When the Turks of the house of Seljuk + pervaded Asia, and threatened Constantinople, we have seen, at the council + of Placentia, the suppliant ambassadors of Alexius imploring the + protection of the common father of the Christians. No sooner had the arms + of the French pilgrims removed the sultan from Nice to Iconium, than the + Greek princes resumed, or avowed, their genuine hatred and contempt for + the schismatics of the West, which precipitated the first downfall of + their empire. The date of the Mogul invasion is marked in the soft and + charitable language of John Vataces. After the recovery of Constantinople, + the throne of the first Palæologus was encompassed by foreign and domestic + enemies; as long as the sword of Charles was suspended over his head, he + basely courted the favor of the Roman pontiff; and sacrificed to the + present danger his faith, his virtue, and the affection of his subjects. + On the decease of Michael, the prince and people asserted the independence + of their church, and the purity of their creed: the elder Andronicus + neither feared nor loved the Latins; in his last distress, pride was the + safeguard of superstition; nor could he decently retract in his age the + firm and orthodox declarations of his youth. His grandson, the younger + Andronicus, was less a slave in his temper and situation; and the conquest + of Bithynia by the Turks admonished him to seek a temporal and spiritual + alliance with the Western princes. After a separation and silence of fifty + years, a secret agent, the monk Barlaam, was despatched to Pope Benedict + the Twelfth; and his artful instructions appear to have been drawn by the + master-hand of the great domestic. <a href="#linkHnote-1" + name="linkHnoteref-1" id="linkHnoteref-1">1</a> "Most holy father," was he + commissioned to say, "the emperor is not less desirous than yourself of a + union between the two churches: but in this delicate transaction, he is + obliged to respect his own dignity and the prejudices of his subjects. The + ways of union are twofold; force and persuasion. Of force, the inefficacy + has been already tried; since the Latins have subdued the empire, without + subduing the minds, of the Greeks. The method of persuasion, though slow, + is sure and permanent. A deputation of thirty or forty of our doctors + would probably agree with those of the Vatican, in the love of truth and + the unity of belief; but on their return, what would be the use, the + recompense, of such an agreement? the scorn of their brethren, and the + reproaches of a blind and obstinate nation. Yet that nation is accustomed + to reverence the general councils, which have fixed the articles of our + faith; and if they reprobate the decrees of Lyons, it is because the + Eastern churches were neither heard nor represented in that arbitrary + meeting. For this salutary end, it will be expedient, and even necessary, + that a well-chosen legate should be sent into Greece, to convene the + patriarchs of Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem; and, + with their aid, to prepare a free and universal synod. But at this + moment," continued the subtle agent, "the empire is assaulted and + endangered by the Turks, who have occupied four of the greatest cities of + Anatolia. The Christian inhabitants have expressed a wish of returning to + their allegiance and religion; but the forces and revenues of the emperor + are insufficient for their deliverance: and the Roman legate must be + accompanied, or preceded, by an army of Franks, to expel the infidels, and + open a way to the holy sepulchre." If the suspicious Latins should require + some pledge, some previous effect of the sincerity of the Greeks, the + answers of Barlaam were perspicuous and rational. "<i>1.</i> A general + synod can alone consummate the union of the churches; nor can such a synod + be held till the three Oriental patriarchs, and a great number of bishops, + are enfranchised from the Mahometan yoke. <i>2.</i> The Greeks are + alienated by a long series of oppression and injury: they must be + reconciled by some act of brotherly love, some effectual succor, which may + fortify the authority and arguments of the emperor, and the friends of the + union. <i>3.</i> If some difference of faith or ceremonies should be found + incurable, the Greeks, however, are the disciples of Christ; and the Turks + are the common enemies of the Christian name. The Armenians, Cyprians, and + Rhodians, are equally attacked; and it will become the piety of the French + princes to draw their swords in the general defence of religion. <i>4.</i> + Should the subjects of Andronicus be treated as the worst of schismatics, + of heretics, of pagans, a judicious policy may yet instruct the powers of + the West to embrace a useful ally, to uphold a sinking empire, to guard + the confines of Europe; and rather to join the Greeks against the Turks, + than to expect the union of the Turkish arms with the troops and treasures + of captive Greece." The reasons, the offers, and the demands, of + Andronicus were eluded with cold and stately indifference. The kings of + France and Naples declined the dangers and glory of a crusade; the pope + refused to call a new synod to determine old articles of faith; and his + regard for the obsolete claims of the Latin emperor and clergy engaged him + to use an offensive superscription,—"To the <i>moderator</i> <a + href="#linkHnote-2" name="linkHnoteref-2" id="linkHnoteref-2">2</a> of the + Greeks, and the persons who style themselves the patriarchs of the Eastern + churches." For such an embassy, a time and character less propitious could + not easily have been found. Benedict the Twelfth <a href="#linkHnote-3" + name="linkHnoteref-3" id="linkHnoteref-3">3</a> was a dull peasant, + perplexed with scruples, and immersed in sloth and wine: his pride might + enrich with a third crown the papal tiara, but he was alike unfit for the + regal and the pastoral office. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-1" id="linkHnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ This curious instruction + was transcribed (I believe) from the Vatican archives, by Odoricus + Raynaldus, in his Continuation of the Annals of Baronius, (Romæ, 1646—1677, + in x. volumes in folio.) I have contented myself with the Abbé Fleury, + (Hist. Ecclésiastique. tom. xx. p. 1—8,) whose abstracts I have + always found to be clear, accurate, and impartial.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-2" id="linkHnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ The ambiguity of this + title is happy or ingenious; and <i>moderator</i>, as synonymous to <i>rector</i>, + <i>gubernator</i>, is a word of classical, and even Ciceronian, Latinity, + which may be found, not in the Glossary of Ducange, but in the Thesaurus + of Robert Stephens.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-3" id="linkHnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ The first epistle (sine + titulo) of Petrarch exposes the danger of the <i>bark</i>, and the + incapacity of the <i>pilot</i>. Hæc inter, vino madidus, ævo gravis, ac + soporifero rore perfusus, jamjam nutitat, dormitat, jam somno præceps, + atque (utinam solus) ruit..... Heu quanto felicius patrio terram sulcasset + aratro, quam scalmum piscatorium ascendisset! This satire engages his + biographer to weigh the virtues and vices of Benedict XII. which have been + exaggerated by Guelphs and Ghibe lines, by Papists and Protestants, (see + Mémoires sur la Vie de Pétrarque, tom. i. p. 259, ii. not. xv. p. 13—16.) + He gave occasion to the saying, Bibamus papaliter.] + </p> + <p> + After the decease of Andronicus, while the Greeks were distracted by + intestine war, they could not presume to agitate a general union of the + Christians. But as soon as Cantacuzene had subdued and pardoned his + enemies, he was anxious to justify, or at least to extenuate, the + introduction of the Turks into Europe, and the nuptials of his daughter + with a Mussulman prince. Two officers of state, with a Latin interpreter, + were sent in his name to the Roman court, which was transplanted to + Avignon, on the banks of the Rhône, during a period of seventy years: they + represented the hard necessity which had urged him to embrace the alliance + of the miscreants, and pronounced by his command the specious and edifying + sounds of union and crusade. Pope Clement the Sixth, <a href="#linkHnote-4" + name="linkHnoteref-4" id="linkHnoteref-4">4</a> the successor of Benedict, + received them with hospitality and honor, acknowledged the innocence of + their sovereign, excused his distress, applauded his magnanimity, and + displayed a clear knowledge of the state and revolutions of the Greek + empire, which he had imbibed from the honest accounts of a Savoyard lady, + an attendant of the empress Anne. <a href="#linkHnote-5" + name="linkHnoteref-5" id="linkHnoteref-5">5</a> If Clement was ill endowed + with the virtues of a priest, he possessed, however, the spirit and + magnificence of a prince, whose liberal hand distributed benefices and + kingdoms with equal facility. Under his reign Avignon was the seat of pomp + and pleasure: in his youth he had surpassed the licentiousness of a baron; + and the palace, nay, the bed-chamber of the pope, was adorned, or + polluted, by the visits of his female favorites. The wars of France and + England were adverse to the holy enterprise; but his vanity was amused by + the splendid idea; and the Greek ambassadors returned with two Latin + bishops, the ministers of the pontiff. On their arrival at Constantinople, + the emperor and the nuncios admired each other's piety and eloquence; and + their frequent conferences were filled with mutual praises and promises, + by which both parties were amused, and neither could be deceived. "I am + delighted," said the devout Cantacuzene, "with the project of our holy + war, which must redound to my personal glory, as well as to the public + benefit of Christendom. My dominions will give a free passage to the + armies of France: my troops, my galleys, my treasures, shall be + consecrated to the common cause; and happy would be my fate, could I + deserve and obtain the crown of martyrdom. Words are insufficient to + express the ardor with which I sigh for the reunion of the scattered + members of Christ. If my death could avail, I would gladly present my + sword and my neck: if the spiritual phnix could arise from my ashes, I + would erect the pile, and kindle the flame with my own hands." Yet the + Greek emperor presumed to observe, that the articles of faith which + divided the two churches had been introduced by the pride and + precipitation of the Latins: he disclaimed the servile and arbitrary steps + of the first Palæologus; and firmly declared, that he would never submit + his conscience unless to the decrees of a free and universal synod. "The + situation of the times," continued he, "will not allow the pope and myself + to meet either at Rome or Constantinople; but some maritime city may be + chosen on the verge of the two empires, to unite the bishops, and to + instruct the faithful, of the East and West." The nuncios seemed content + with the proposition; and Cantacuzene affects to deplore the failure of + his hopes, which were soon overthrown by the death of Clement, and the + different temper of his successor. His own life was prolonged, but it was + prolonged in a cloister; and, except by his prayers, the humble monk was + incapable of directing the counsels of his pupil or the state. <a + href="#linkHnote-6" name="linkHnoteref-6" id="linkHnoteref-6">6</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-4" id="linkHnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ See the original Lives of + Clement VI. in Muratori, (Script. Rerum Italicarum, tom. iii. P. ii. p. + 550—589;) Matteo Villani, (Chron. l. iii. c. 43, in Muratori, tom. + xiv. p. 186,) who styles him, molto cavallaresco, poco religioso; Fleury, + (Hist. Ecclés. tom. xx. p. 126;) and the Vie de Pétrarque, (tom. ii. p. 42—45.) + The abbé de Sade treats him with the most indulgence; but <i>he</i> is a + gentleman as well as a priest.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-5" id="linkHnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ Her name (most probably + corrupted) was Zampea. She had accompanied, and alone remained with her + mistress at Constantinople, where her prudence, erudition, and politeness + deserved the praises of the Greeks themselves, (Cantacuzen. l. i. c. 42.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-6" id="linkHnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ See this whole negotiation + in Cantacuzene, (l. iv. c. 9,) who, amidst the praises and virtues which + he bestows on himself, reveals the uneasiness of a guilty conscience.] + </p> + <p> + Yet of all the Byzantine princes, that pupil, John Palæologus, was the + best disposed to embrace, to believe, and to obey, the shepherd of the + West. His mother, Anne of Savoy, was baptized in the bosom of the Latin + church: her marriage with Andronicus imposed a change of name, of apparel, + and of worship, but her heart was still faithful to her country and + religion: she had formed the infancy of her son, and she governed the + emperor, after his mind, or at least his stature, was enlarged to the size + of man. In the first year of his deliverance and restoration, the Turks + were still masters of the Hellespont; the son of Cantacuzene was in arms + at Adrianople; and Palæologus could depend neither on himself nor on his + people. By his mother's advice, and in the hope of foreign aid, he abjured + the rights both of the church and state; and the act of slavery, <a + href="#linkHnote-7" name="linkHnoteref-7" id="linkHnoteref-7">7</a> + subscribed in purple ink, and sealed with the <i>golden</i> bull, was + privately intrusted to an Italian agent. The first article of the treaty + is an oath of fidelity and obedience to Innocent the Sixth and his + successors, the supreme pontiffs of the Roman and Catholic church. The + emperor promises to entertain with due reverence their legates and + nuncios; to assign a palace for their residence, and a temple for their + worship; and to deliver his second son Manuel as the hostage of his faith. + For these condescensions he requires a prompt succor of fifteen galleys, + with five hundred men at arms, and a thousand archers, to serve against + his Christian and Mussulman enemies. Palæologus engages to impose on his + clergy and people the same spiritual yoke; but as the resistance of the + Greeks might be justly foreseen, he adopts the two effectual methods of + corruption and education. The legate was empowered to distribute the + vacant benefices among the ecclesiastics who should subscribe the creed of + the Vatican: three schools were instituted to instruct the youth of + Constantinople in the language and doctrine of the Latins; and the name of + Andronicus, the heir of the empire, was enrolled as the first student. + Should he fail in the measures of persuasion or force, Palæologus declares + himself unworthy to reign; transferred to the pope all regal and paternal + authority; and invests Innocent with full power to regulate the family, + the government, and the marriage, of his son and successor. But this + treaty was neither executed nor published: the Roman galleys were as vain + and imaginary as the submission of the Greeks; and it was only by the + secrecy that their sovereign escaped the dishonor of this fruitless + humiliation. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-7" id="linkHnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ See this ignominious + treaty in Fleury, (Hist. Ecclés. p. 151—154,) from Raynaldus, who + drew it from the Vatican archives. It was not worth the trouble of a pious + forgery.] + </p> + <p> + The tempest of the Turkish arms soon burst on his head; and after the loss + of Adrianople and Romania, he was enclosed in his capital, the vassal of + the haughty Amurath, with the miserable hope of being the last devoured by + the savage. In this abject state, Palæologus embraced the resolution of + embarking for Venice, and casting himself at the feet of the pope: he was + the first of the Byzantine princes who had ever visited the unknown + regions of the West, yet in them alone he could seek consolation or + relief; and with less violation of his dignity he might appear in the + sacred college than at the Ottoman <i>Porte</i>. After a long absence, the + Roman pontiffs were returning from Avignon to the banks of the Tyber: + Urban the Fifth, <a href="#linkHnote-8" name="linkHnoteref-8" + id="linkHnoteref-8">8</a> of a mild and virtuous character, encouraged or + allowed the pilgrimage of the Greek prince; and, within the same year, + enjoyed the glory of receiving in the Vatican the two Imperial shadows who + represented the majesty of Constantine and Charlemagne. In this suppliant + visit, the emperor of Constantinople, whose vanity was lost in his + distress, gave more than could be expected of empty sounds and formal + submissions. A previous trial was imposed; and, in the presence of four + cardinals, he acknowledged, as a true Catholic, the supremacy of the pope, + and the double procession of the Holy Ghost. After this purification, he + was introduced to a public audience in the church of St. Peter: Urban, in + the midst of the cardinals, was seated on his throne; the Greek monarch, + after three genuflections, devoutly kissed the feet, the hands, and at + length the mouth, of the holy father, who celebrated high mass in his + presence, allowed him to lead the bridle of his mule, and treated him with + a sumptuous banquet in the Vatican. The entertainment of Palæologus was + friendly and honorable; yet some difference was observed between the + emperors of the East and West; <a href="#linkHnote-9" name="linkHnoteref-9" + id="linkHnoteref-9">9</a> nor could the former be entitled to the rare + privilege of chanting the gospel in the rank of a deacon. <a + href="#linkHnote-10" name="linkHnoteref-10" id="linkHnoteref-10">10</a> In + favor of his proselyte, Urban strove to rekindle the zeal of the French + king and the other powers of the West; but he found them cold in the + general cause, and active only in their domestic quarrels. The last hope + of the emperor was in an English mercenary, John Hawkwood, <a + href="#linkHnote-11" name="linkHnoteref-11" id="linkHnoteref-11">11</a> or + Acuto, who, with a band of adventurers, the white brotherhood, had ravaged + Italy from the Alps to Calabria; sold his services to the hostile states; + and incurred a just excommunication by shooting his arrows against the + papal residence. A special license was granted to negotiate with the + outlaw, but the forces, or the spirit, of Hawkwood, were unequal to the + enterprise: and it was for the advantage, perhaps, of Palæologus to be + disappointed of succor, that must have been costly, that could not be + effectual, and which might have been dangerous. <a href="#linkHnote-12" + name="linkHnoteref-12" id="linkHnoteref-12">12</a> The disconsolate Greek + <a href="#linkHnote-13" name="linkHnoteref-13" id="linkHnoteref-13">13</a> + prepared for his return, but even his return was impeded by a most + ignominious obstacle. On his arrival at Venice, he had borrowed large sums + at exorbitant usury; but his coffers were empty, his creditors were + impatient, and his person was detained as the best security for the + payment. His eldest son, Andronicus, the regent of Constantinople, was + repeatedly urged to exhaust every resource; and even by stripping the + churches, to extricate his father from captivity and disgrace. But the + unnatural youth was insensible of the disgrace, and secretly pleased with + the captivity of the emperor: the state was poor, the clergy were + obstinate; nor could some religious scruple be wanting to excuse the guilt + of his indifference and delay. Such undutiful neglect was severely + reproved by the piety of his brother Manuel, who instantly sold or + mortgaged all that he possessed, embarked for Venice, relieved his father, + and pledged his own freedom to be responsible for the debt. On his return + to Constantinople, the parent and king distinguished his two sons with + suitable rewards; but the faith and manners of the slothful Palæologus had + not been improved by his Roman pilgrimage; and his apostasy or conversion, + devoid of any spiritual or temporal effects, was speedily forgotten by the + Greeks and Latins. <a href="#linkHnote-14" name="linkHnoteref-14" + id="linkHnoteref-14">14</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-8" id="linkHnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ See the two first original + Lives of Urban V., (in Muratori, Script. Rerum Italicarum, tom. iii. P. + ii. p. 623, 635,) and the Ecclesiastical Annals of Spondanus, (tom. i. p. + 573, A.D. 1369, No. 7,) and Raynaldus, (Fleury, Hist. Ecclés. tom. xx. p. + 223, 224.) Yet, from some variations, I suspect the papal writers of + slightly magnifying the genuflections of Palæologus.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-9" id="linkHnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ Paullo minus quam si + fuisset Imperator Romanorum. Yet his title of Imperator Græcorum was no + longer disputed, (Vit. Urban V. p. 623.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-10" id="linkHnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ It was confined to the + successors of Charlemagne, and to them only on Christmas-day. On all other + festivals these Imperial deacons were content to serve the pope, as he + said mass, with the book and the <i>corporale</i>. Yet the abbé de Sade + generously thinks that the merits of Charles IV. might have entitled him, + though not on the proper day, (A.D. 1368, November 1,) to the whole + privilege. He seems to affix a just value on the privilege and the man, + (Vie de Petrarque, tom. iii. p. 735.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-11" id="linkHnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ Through some Italian + corruptions, the etymology of <i>Falcone in bosco</i>, (Matteo Villani, l. + xi. c. 79, in Muratori, tom. xv. p. 746,) suggests the English word <i>Hawkwood</i>, + the true name of our adventurous countryman, (Thomas Walsingham, Hist. + Anglican. inter Scriptores Camdeni, p. 184.) After two-and-twenty + victories, and one defeat, he died, in 1394, general of the Florentines, + and was buried with such honors as the republic has not paid to Dante or + Petrarch, (Muratori, Annali d'Italia, tom. xii. p. 212—371.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-12" id="linkHnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ This torrent of English + (by birth or service) overflowed from France into Italy after the peace of + Bretigny in 1630. Yet the exclamation of Muratori (Annali, tom. xii. p. + 197) is rather true than civil. "Ci mancava ancor questo, che dopo essere + calpestrata l'Italia da tanti masnadieri Tedeschi ed Ungheri, venissero + fin dall' Inghliterra nuovi <i>cani</i> a finire di divorarla."] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-13" id="linkHnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ Chalcondyles, l. i. p. + 25, 26. The Greek supposes his journey to the king of France, which is + sufficiently refuted by the silence of the national historians. Nor am I + much more inclined to believe, that Palæologus departed from Italy, valde + bene consolatus et contentus, (Vit. Urban V. p. 623.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-14" id="linkHnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ His return in 1370, and + the coronation of Manuel, Sept. 25, 1373, (Ducange, Fam. Byzant. p. 241,) + leaves some intermediate æra for the conspiracy and punishment of + Andronicus.] + </p> + <p> + Thirty years after the return of Palæologus, his son and successor, + Manuel, from a similar motive, but on a larger scale, again visited the + countries of the West. In a preceding chapter I have related his treaty + with Bajazet, the violation of that treaty, the siege or blockade of + Constantinople, and the French succor under the command of the gallant + Boucicault. <a href="#linkHnote-15" name="linkHnoteref-15" + id="linkHnoteref-15">15</a> By his ambassadors, Manuel had solicited the + Latin powers; but it was thought that the presence of a distressed monarch + would draw tears and supplies from the hardest Barbarians; <a + href="#linkHnote-16" name="linkHnoteref-16" id="linkHnoteref-16">16</a> + and the marshal who advised the journey prepared the reception of the + Byzantine prince. The land was occupied by the Turks; but the navigation + of Venice was safe and open: Italy received him as the first, or, at + least, as the second, of the Christian princes; Manuel was pitied as the + champion and confessor of the faith; and the dignity of his behavior + prevented that pity from sinking into contempt. From Venice he proceeded + to Padua and Pavia; and even the duke of Milan, a secret ally of Bajazet, + gave him safe and honorable conduct to the verge of his dominions. <a + href="#linkHnote-17" name="linkHnoteref-17" id="linkHnoteref-17">17</a> On + the confines of France <a href="#linkHnote-18" name="linkHnoteref-18" + id="linkHnoteref-18">18</a> the royal officers undertook the care of his + person, journey, and expenses; and two thousand of the richest citizens, + in arms and on horseback, came forth to meet him as far as Charenton, in + the neighborhood of the capital. At the gates of Paris, he was saluted by + the chancellor and the parliament; and Charles the Sixth, attended by his + princes and nobles, welcomed his brother with a cordial embrace. The + successor of Constantine was clothed in a robe of white silk, and mounted + on a milk-white steed, a circumstance, in the French ceremonial, of + singular importance: the white color is considered as the symbol of + sovereignty; and, in a late visit, the German emperor, after a haughty + demand and a peevish refusal, had been reduced to content himself with a + black courser. Manuel was lodged in the Louvre; a succession of feasts and + balls, the pleasures of the banquet and the chase, were ingeniously varied + by the politeness of the French, to display their magnificence, and amuse + his grief: he was indulged in the liberty of his chapel; and the doctors + of the Sorbonne were astonished, and possibly scandalized, by the + language, the rites, and the vestments, of his Greek clergy. But the + slightest glance on the state of the kingdom must teach him to despair of + any effectual assistance. The unfortunate Charles, though he enjoyed some + lucid intervals, continually relapsed into furious or stupid insanity: the + reins of government were alternately seized by his brother and uncle, the + dukes of Orleans and Burgundy, whose factious competition prepared the + miseries of civil war. The former was a gay youth, dissolved in luxury and + love: the latter was the father of John count of Nevers, who had so lately + been ransomed from Turkish captivity; and, if the fearless son was ardent + to revenge his defeat, the more prudent Burgundy was content with the cost + and peril of the first experiment. When Manuel had satiated the curiosity, + and perhaps fatigued the patience, of the French, he resolved on a visit + to the adjacent island. In his progress from Dover, he was entertained at + Canterbury with due reverence by the prior and monks of St. Austin; and, + on Blackheath, King Henry the Fourth, with the English court, saluted the + Greek hero, (I copy our old historian,) who, during many days, was lodged + and treated in London as emperor of the East. <a href="#linkHnote-19" + name="linkHnoteref-19" id="linkHnoteref-19">19</a> But the state of + England was still more adverse to the design of the holy war. In the same + year, the hereditary sovereign had been deposed and murdered: the reigning + prince was a successful usurper, whose ambition was punished by jealousy + and remorse: nor could Henry of Lancaster withdraw his person or forces + from the defence of a throne incessantly shaken by conspiracy and + rebellion. He pitied, he praised, he feasted, the emperor of + Constantinople; but if the English monarch assumed the cross, it was only + to appease his people, and perhaps his conscience, by the merit or + semblance of his pious intention. <a href="#linkHnote-20" + name="linkHnoteref-20" id="linkHnoteref-20">20</a> Satisfied, however, + with gifts and honors, Manuel returned to Paris; and, after a residence of + two years in the West, shaped his course through Germany and Italy, + embarked at Venice, and patiently expected, in the Morea, the moment of + his ruin or deliverance. Yet he had escaped the ignominious necessity of + offering his religion to public or private sale. The Latin church was + distracted by the great schism; the kings, the nations, the universities, + of Europe were divided in their obedience between the popes of Rome and + Avignon; and the emperor, anxious to conciliate the friendship of both + parties, abstained from any correspondence with the indigent and unpopular + rivals. His journey coincided with the year of the jubilee; but he passed + through Italy without desiring, or deserving, the plenary indulgence which + abolished the guilt or penance of the sins of the faithful. The Roman pope + was offended by this neglect; accused him of irreverence to an image of + Christ; and exhorted the princes of Italy to reject and abandon the + obstinate schismatic. <a href="#linkHnote-21" name="linkHnoteref-21" + id="linkHnoteref-21">21</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-15" id="linkHnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ Mémoires de Boucicault, + P. i. c. 35, 36.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-16" id="linkHnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ His journey into the + west of Europe is slightly, and I believe reluctantly, noticed by + Chalcondyles (l. ii. c. 44—50) and Ducas, (c. 14.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-17" id="linkHnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ Muratori, Annali + d'Italia, tom. xii. p. 406. John Galeazzo was the first and most powerful + duke of Milan. His connection with Bajazet is attested by Froissard; and + he contributed to save and deliver the French captives of Nicopolis.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-18" id="linkHnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ For the reception of + Manuel at Paris, see Spondanus, (Annal. Ecclés. tom. i. p. 676, 677, A.D. + 1400, No. 5,) who quotes Juvenal des Ursins and the monk of St. Denys; and + Villaret, (Hist. de France, tom. xii. p. 331—334,) who quotes nobody + according to the last fashion of the French writers.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-19" id="linkHnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ A short Hnote of Manuel + in England is extracted by Dr. Hody from a MS. at Lambeth, (de Græcis + illustribus, p. 14,) C. P. Imperator, diu variisque et horrendis Paganorum + insultibus coarctatus, ut pro eisdem resistentiam triumphalem perquireret, + Anglorum Regem visitare decrevit, &c. Rex (says Walsingham, p. 364) + nobili apparatû... suscepit (ut decuit) tantum Heroa, duxitque Londonias, + et per multos dies exhibuit gloriose, pro expensis hospitii sui solvens, + et eum respiciens tanto fastigio donativis. He repeats the same in his + Upodigma Neustriæ, (p. 556.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-20" id="linkHnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ Shakspeare begins and + ends the play of Henry IV. with that prince's vow of a crusade, and his + belief that he should die in Jerusalem.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-21" id="linkHnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ This fact is preserved + in the Historia Politica, A.D. 1391—1478, published by Martin + Crusius, (Turco Græcia, p. 1—43.) The image of Christ, which the + Greek emperor refused to worship, was probably a work of sculpture.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkH2HCH0002" id="linkH2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXVI: Union Of The Greek And Latin Churches.—Part II. + </h2> + <p> + During the period of the crusades, the Greeks beheld with astonishment and + terror the perpetual stream of emigration that flowed, and continued to + flow, from the unknown climates of their West. The visits of their last + emperors removed the veil of separation, and they disclosed to their eyes + the powerful nations of Europe, whom they no longer presumed to brand with + the name of Barbarians. The observations of Manuel, and his more + inquisitive followers, have been preserved by a Byzantine historian of the + times: <a href="#linkHnote-22" name="linkHnoteref-22" id="linkHnoteref-22">22</a> + his scattered ideas I shall collect and abridge; and it may be amusing + enough, perhaps instructive, to contemplate the rude pictures of Germany, + France, and England, whose ancient and modern state are so familiar to <i>our</i> + minds. I. Germany (says the Greek Chalcondyles) is of ample latitude from + Vienna to the ocean; and it stretches (a strange geography) from Prague in + Bohemia to the River Tartessus, and the Pyrenæan Mountains. <a + href="#linkHnote-23" name="linkHnoteref-23" id="linkHnoteref-23">23</a> + The soil, except in figs and olives, is sufficiently fruitful; the air is + salubrious; the bodies of the natives are robust and healthy; and these + cold regions are seldom visited with the calamities of pestilence, or + earthquakes. After the Scythians or Tartars, the Germans are the most + numerous of nations: they are brave and patient; and were they united + under a single head, their force would be irresistible. By the gift of the + pope, they have acquired the privilege of choosing the Roman emperor; <a + href="#linkHnote-24" name="linkHnoteref-24" id="linkHnoteref-24">24</a> + nor is any people more devoutly attached to the faith and obedience of the + Latin patriarch. The greatest part of the country is divided among the + princes and prelates; but Strasburg, Cologne, Hamburgh, and more than two + hundred free cities, are governed by sage and equal laws, according to the + will, and for the advantage, of the whole community. The use of duels, or + single combats on foot, prevails among them in peace and war: their + industry excels in all the mechanic arts; and the Germans may boast of the + invention of gunpowder and cannon, which is now diffused over the greatest + part of the world. II. The kingdom of France is spread above fifteen or + twenty days' journey from Germany to Spain, and from the Alps to the + British Ocean; containing many flourishing cities, and among these Paris, + the seat of the king, which surpasses the rest in riches and luxury. Many + princes and lords alternately wait in his palace, and acknowledge him as + their sovereign: the most powerful are the dukes of Bretagne and Burgundy; + of whom the latter possesses the wealthy province of Flanders, whose + harbors are frequented by the ships and merchants of our own, and the more + remote, seas. The French are an ancient and opulent people; and their + language and manners, though somewhat different, are not dissimilar from + those of the Italians. Vain of the Imperial dignity of Charlemagne, of + their victories over the Saracens, and of the exploits of their heroes, + Oliver and Rowland, <a href="#linkHnote-25" name="linkHnoteref-25" + id="linkHnoteref-25">25</a> they esteem themselves the first of the + western nations; but this foolish arrogance has been recently humbled by + the unfortunate events of their wars against the English, the inhabitants + of the British island. III. Britain, in the ocean, and opposite to the + shores of Flanders, may be considered either as one, or as three islands; + but the whole is united by a common interest, by the same manners, and by + a similar government. The measure of its circumference is five thousand + stadia: the land is overspread with towns and villages: though destitute + of wine, and not abounding in fruit-trees, it is fertile in wheat and + barley; in honey and wool; and much cloth is manufactured by the + inhabitants. In populousness and power, in richness and luxury, London, <a + href="#linkHnote-26" name="linkHnoteref-26" id="linkHnoteref-26">26</a> + the metropolis of the isle, may claim a preeminence over all the cities of + the West. It is situate on the Thames, a broad and rapid river, which at + the distance of thirty miles falls into the Gallic Sea; and the daily flow + and ebb of the tide affords a safe entrance and departure to the vessels + of commerce. The king is head of a powerful and turbulent aristocracy: his + principal vassals hold their estates by a free and unalterable tenure; and + the laws define the limits of his authority and their obedience. The + kingdom has been often afflicted by foreign conquest and domestic + sedition: but the natives are bold and hardy, renowned in arms and + victorious in war. The form of their shields or targets is derived from + the Italians, that of their swords from the Greeks; the use of the long + bow is the peculiar and decisive advantage of the English. Their language + bears no affinity to the idioms of the Continent: in the habits of + domestic life, they are not easily distinguished from their neighbors of + France: but the most singular circumstance of their manners is their + disregard of conjugal honor and of female chastity. In their mutual + visits, as the first act of hospitality, the guest is welcomed in the + embraces of their wives and daughters: among friends they are lent and + borrowed without shame; nor are the islanders offended at this strange + commerce, and its inevitable consequences. <a href="#linkHnote-27" + name="linkHnoteref-27" id="linkHnoteref-27">27</a> Informed as we are of + the customs of Old England and assured of the virtue of our mothers, we + may smile at the credulity, or resent the injustice, of the Greek, who + must have confounded a modest salute <a href="#linkHnote-28" + name="linkHnoteref-28" id="linkHnoteref-28">28</a> with a criminal + embrace. But his credulity and injustice may teach an important lesson; to + distrust the accounts of foreign and remote nations, and to suspend our + belief of every tale that deviates from the laws of nature and the + character of man. <a href="#linkHnote-29" name="linkHnoteref-29" + id="linkHnoteref-29">29</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-22" id="linkHnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ The Greek and Turkish + history of Laonicus Chalcondyles ends with the winter of 1463; and the + abrupt conclusion seems to mark, that he laid down his pen in the same + year. We know that he was an Athenian, and that some contemporaries of the + same name contributed to the revival of the Greek language in Italy. But + in his numerous digressions, the modest historian has never introduced + himself; and his editor Leunclavius, as well as Fabricius, (Bibliot. Græc. + tom. vi. p. 474,) seems ignorant of his life and character. For his + descriptions of Germany, France, and England, see l. ii. p. 36, 37, 44—50.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-23" id="linkHnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ I shall not animadvert + on the geographical errors of Chalcondyles. In this instance, he perhaps + followed, and mistook, Herodotus, (l. ii. c. 33,) whose text may be + explained, (Herodote de Larcher, tom. ii. p. 219, 220,) or whose ignorance + may be excused. Had these modern Greeks never read Strabo, or any of their + lesser geographers?] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-24" id="linkHnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ A citizen of new Rome, + while new Rome survived, would have scorned to dignify the German 'Rhx + with titles of BasileuV or Autokratwr 'Rwmaiwn: but all pride was extinct + in the bosom of Chalcondyles; and he describes the Byzantine prince, and + his subject, by the proper, though humble, names of ''EllhneV and BasileuV + 'Ellhnwn.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-25" id="linkHnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ Most of the old romances + were translated in the xivth century into French prose, and soon became + the favorite amusement of the knights and ladies in the court of Charles + VI. If a Greek believed in the exploits of Rowland and Oliver, he may + surely be excused, since the monks of St. Denys, the national historians, + have inserted the fables of Archbishop Turpin in their Chronicles of + France.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-26" id="linkHnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ Londinh.... de te poliV + dunamei te proecousa tvn en th nhsw tauth pasvn polewn, olbw te kai th + allh eudaimonia oudemiaV tvn peoV esperan leipomenh. Even since the time + of Fitzstephen, (the xiith century,) London appears to have maintained + this preeminence of wealth and magnitude; and her gradual increase has, at + least, kept pace with the general improvement of Europe.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-27" id="linkHnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ If the double sense of + the verb Kuw (osculor, and in utero gero) be equivocal, the context and + pious horror of Chalcondyles can leave no doubt of his meaning and + mistake, (p. 49.) * Note: I can discover no "pious horror" in the plain + manner in which Chalcondyles relates this strange usage. He says, oude + aiscunun tovto feoei eautoiV kuesqai taV te gunaikaV autvn kai taV + qugateraV, yet these are expression beyond what would be used, if the + ambiguous word kuesqai were taken in its more innocent sense. Nor can the + phrase parecontai taV eautvn gunaikaV en toiV epithdeioiV well bear a less + coarse interpretation. Gibbon is possibly right as to the origin of this + extraordinary mistake.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-28" id="linkHnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ Erasmus (Epist. Fausto + Andrelino) has a pretty passage on the English fashion of kissing + strangers on their arrival and departure, from whence, however, he draws + no scandalous inferences.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-29" id="linkHnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ Perhaps we may apply + this remark to the community of wives among the old Britons, as it is + supposed by Cæsar and Dion, (Dion Cassius, l. lxii. tom. ii. p. 1007,) + with Reimar's judicious annotation. The <i>Arreoy</i> of Otaheite, so + certain at first, is become less visible and scandalous, in proportion as + we have studied the manners of that gentle and amorous people.] + </p> + <p> + After his return, and the victory of Timour, Manuel reigned many years in + prosperity and peace. As long as the sons of Bajazet solicited his + friendship and spared his dominions, he was satisfied with the national + religion; and his leisure was employed in composing twenty theological + dialogues for its defence. The appearance of the Byzantine ambassadors at + the council of Constance, <a href="#linkHnote-30" name="linkHnoteref-30" + id="linkHnoteref-30">30</a> announces the restoration of the Turkish + power, as well as of the Latin church: the conquest of the sultans, + Mahomet and Amurath, reconciled the emperor to the Vatican; and the siege + of Constantinople almost tempted him to acquiesce in the double procession + of the Holy Ghost. When Martin the Fifth ascended without a rival the + chair of St. Peter, a friendly intercourse of letters and embassies was + revived between the East and West. Ambition on one side, and distress on + the other, dictated the same decent language of charity and peace: the + artful Greek expressed a desire of marrying his six sons to Italian + princesses; and the Roman, not less artful, despatched the daughter of the + marquis of Montferrat, with a company of noble virgins, to soften, by + their charms, the obstinacy of the schismatics. Yet under this mask of + zeal, a discerning eye will perceive that all was hollow and insincere in + the court and church of Constantinople. According to the vicissitudes of + danger and repose, the emperor advanced or retreated; alternately + instructed and disavowed his ministers; and escaped from the importunate + pressure by urging the duty of inquiry, the obligation of collecting the + sense of his patriarchs and bishops, and the impossibility of convening + them at a time when the Turkish arms were at the gates of his capital. + From a review of the public transactions it will appear that the Greeks + insisted on three successive measures, a succor, a council, and a final + reunion, while the Latins eluded the second, and only promised the first, + as a consequential and voluntary reward of the third. But we have an + opportunity of unfolding the most secret intentions of Manuel, as he + explained them in a private conversation without artifice or disguise. In + his declining age, the emperor had associated John Palæologus, the second + of the name, and the eldest of his sons, on whom he devolved the greatest + part of the authority and weight of government. One day, in the presence + only of the historian Phranza, <a href="#linkHnote-31" + name="linkHnoteref-31" id="linkHnoteref-31">31</a> his favorite + chamberlain, he opened to his colleague and successor the true principle + of his negotiations with the pope. <a href="#linkHnote-32" + name="linkHnoteref-32" id="linkHnoteref-32">32</a> "Our last resource," + said Manuel, against the Turks, "is their fear of our union with the + Latins, of the warlike nations of the West, who may arm for our relief and + for their destruction. As often as you are threatened by the miscreants, + present this danger before their eyes. Propose a council; consult on the + means; but ever delay and avoid the convocation of an assembly, which + cannot tend either to our spiritual or temporal emolument. The Latins are + proud; the Greeks are obstinate; neither party will recede or retract; and + the attempt of a perfect union will confirm the schism, alienate the + churches, and leave us, without hope or defence, at the mercy of the + Barbarians." Impatient of this salutary lesson, the royal youth arose from + his seat, and departed in silence; and the wise monarch (continued + Phranza) casting his eyes on me, thus resumed his discourse: "My son deems + himself a great and heroic prince; but, alas! our miserable age does not + afford scope for heroism or greatness. His daring spirit might have suited + the happier times of our ancestors; but the present state requires not an + emperor, but a cautious steward of the last relics of our fortunes. Well + do I remember the lofty expectations which he built on our alliance with + Mustapha; and much do I fear, that this rash courage will urge the ruin of + our house, and that even religion may precipitate our downfall." Yet the + experience and authority of Manuel preserved the peace, and eluded the + council; till, in the seventy-eighth year of his age, and in the habit of + a monk, he terminated his career, dividing his precious movables among his + children and the poor, his physicians and his favorite servants. Of his + six sons, <a href="#linkHnote-33" name="linkHnoteref-33" + id="linkHnoteref-33">33</a> Andronicus the Second was invested with the + principality of Thessalonica, and died of a leprosy soon after the sale of + that city to the Venetians and its final conquest by the Turks. Some + fortunate incidents had restored Peloponnesus, or the Morea, to the + empire; and in his more prosperous days, Manuel had fortified the narrow + isthmus of six miles <a href="#linkHnote-34" name="linkHnoteref-34" + id="linkHnoteref-34">34</a> with a stone wall and one hundred and + fifty-three towers. The wall was overthrown by the first blast of the + Ottomans; the fertile peninsula might have been sufficient for the four + younger brothers, Theodore and Constantine, Demetrius and Thomas; but they + wasted in domestic contests the remains of their strength; and the least + successful of the rivals were reduced to a life of dependence in the + Byzantine palace. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-30" id="linkHnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ See Lenfant, Hist. du + Concile de Constance, tom. ii. p. 576; and or the ecclesiastical history + of the times, the Annals of Spondanus the Bibliothèque of Dupin, tom. + xii., and xxist and xxiid volumes of the History, or rather the + Continuation, of Fleury.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-31" id="linkHnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ From his early youth, + George Phranza, or Phranzes, was employed in the service of the state and + palace; and Hanckius (de Script. Byzant. P. i. c. 40) has collected his + life from his own writings. He was no more than four-and-twenty years of + age at the death of Manuel, who recommended him in the strongest terms to + his successor: Imprimis vero hunc Phranzen tibi commendo, qui ministravit + mihi fideliter et diligenter (Phranzes, l. ii. c. i.) Yet the emperor John + was cold, and he preferred the service of the despots of Peloponnesus.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-32" id="linkHnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ See Phranzes, l. ii. c. + 13. While so many manuscripts of the Greek original are extant in the + libraries of Rome, Milan, the Escurial, &c., it is a matter of shame + and reproach, that we should be reduced to the Latin version, or abstract, + of James Pontanus, (ad calcem Theophylact, Simocattæ: Ingolstadt, 1604,) + so deficient in accuracy and elegance, (Fabric. Bibliot. Græc. tom. vi. p. + 615—620.) * Note: The Greek text of Phranzes was edited by F. C. + Alter Vindobonæ, 1796. It has been re-edited by Bekker for the new edition + of the Byzantines, Bonn, 1838.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-33" id="linkHnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ See Ducange, Fam. + Byzant. p. 243—248.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-34" id="linkHnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ The exact measure of the + Hexamilion, from sea to sea, was 3800 orgyiæ, or <i>toises</i>, of six + Greek feet, (Phranzes, l. i. c. 38,) which would produce a Greek mile, + still smaller than that of 660 French <i>toises</i>, which is assigned by + D'Anville, as still in use in Turkey. Five miles are commonly reckoned for + the breadth of the isthmus. See the Travels of Spon, Wheeler and + Chandler.] + </p> + <p> + The eldest of the sons of Manuel, John Palæologus the Second, was + acknowledged, after his father's death, as the sole emperor of the Greeks. + He immediately proceeded to repudiate his wife, and to contract a new + marriage with the princess of Trebizond: beauty was in his eyes the first + qualification of an empress; and the clergy had yielded to his firm + assurance, that unless he might be indulged in a divorce, he would retire + to a cloister, and leave the throne to his brother Constantine. The first, + and in truth the only, victory of Palæologus, was over a Jew, <a + href="#linkHnote-35" name="linkHnoteref-35" id="linkHnoteref-35">35</a> + whom, after a long and learned dispute, he converted to the Christian + faith; and this momentous conquest is carefully recorded in the history of + the times. But he soon resumed the design of uniting the East and West; + and, regardless of his father's advice, listened, as it should seem with + sincerity, to the proposal of meeting the pope in a general council beyond + the Adriatic. This dangerous project was encouraged by Martin the Fifth, + and coldly entertained by his successor Eugenius, till, after a tedious + negotiation, the emperor received a summons from the Latin assembly of a + new character, the independent prelates of Basil, who styled themselves + the representatives and judges of the Catholic church. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-35" id="linkHnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ The first objection of + the Jews is on the death of Christ: if it were voluntary, Christ was a + suicide; which the emperor parries with a mystery. They then dispute on + the conception of the Virgin, the sense of the prophecies, &c., + (Phranzes, l. ii. c. 12, a whole chapter.)] + </p> + <p> + The Roman pontiff had fought and conquered in the cause of ecclesiastical + freedom; but the victorious clergy were soon exposed to the tyranny of + their deliverer; and his sacred character was invulnerable to those arms + which they found so keen and effectual against the civil magistrate. Their + great charter, the right of election, was annihilated by appeals, evaded + by trusts or commendams, disappointed by reversionary grants, and + superseded by previous and arbitrary reservations. <a href="#linkHnote-36" + name="linkHnoteref-36" id="linkHnoteref-36">36</a> A public auction was + instituted in the court of Rome: the cardinals and favorites were enriched + with the spoils of nations; and every country might complain that the most + important and valuable benefices were accumulated on the heads of aliens + and absentees. During their residence at Avignon, the ambition of the + popes subsided in the meaner passions of avarice <a href="#linkHnote-37" + name="linkHnoteref-37" id="linkHnoteref-37">37</a> and luxury: they + rigorously imposed on the clergy the tributes of first-fruits and tenths; + but they freely tolerated the impunity of vice, disorder, and corruption. + These manifold scandals were aggravated by the great schism of the West, + which continued above fifty years. In the furious conflicts of Rome and + Avignon, the vices of the rivals were mutually exposed; and their + precarious situation degraded their authority, relaxed their discipline, + and multiplied their wants and exactions. To heal the wounds, and restore + the monarchy, of the church, the synods of Pisa and Constance <a + href="#linkHnote-38" name="linkHnoteref-38" id="linkHnoteref-38">38</a> + were successively convened; but these great assemblies, conscious of their + strength, resolved to vindicate the privileges of the Christian + aristocracy. From a personal sentence against two pontiffs, whom they + rejected, and a third, their acknowledged sovereign, whom they deposed, + the fathers of Constance proceeded to examine the nature and limits of the + Roman supremacy; nor did they separate till they had established the + authority, above the pope, of a general council. It was enacted, that, for + the government and reformation of the church, such assemblies should be + held at regular intervals; and that each synod, before its dissolution, + should appoint the time and place of the subsequent meeting. By the + influence of the court of Rome, the next convocation at Sienna was easily + eluded; but the bold and vigorous proceedings of the council of Basil <a + href="#linkHnote-39" name="linkHnoteref-39" id="linkHnoteref-39">39</a> + had almost been fatal to the reigning pontiff, Eugenius the Fourth. A just + suspicion of his design prompted the fathers to hasten the promulgation of + their first decree, that the representatives of the church-militant on + earth were invested with a divine and spiritual jurisdiction over all + Christians, without excepting the pope; and that a general council could + not be dissolved, prorogued, or transferred, unless by their free + deliberation and consent. On the notice that Eugenius had fulminated a + bull for that purpose, they ventured to summon, to admonish, to threaten, + to censure the contumacious successor of St. Peter. After many delays, to + allow time for repentance, they finally declared, that, unless he + submitted within the term of sixty days, he was suspended from the + exercise of all temporal and ecclesiastical authority. And to mark their + jurisdiction over the prince as well as the priest, they assumed the + government of Avignon, annulled the alienation of the sacred patrimony, + and protected Rome from the imposition of new taxes. Their boldness was + justified, not only by the general opinion of the clergy, but by the + support and power of the first monarchs of Christendom: the emperor + Sigismond declared himself the servant and protector of the synod; Germany + and France adhered to their cause; the duke of Milan was the enemy of + Eugenius; and he was driven from the Vatican by an insurrection of the + Roman people. Rejected at the same time by temporal and spiritual + subjects, submission was his only choice: by a most humiliating bull, the + pope repealed his own acts, and ratified those of the council; + incorporated his legates and cardinals with that venerable body; and <i>seemed</i> + to resign himself to the decrees of the supreme legislature. Their fame + pervaded the countries of the East: and it was in their presence that + Sigismond received the ambassadors of the Turkish sultan, <a + href="#linkHnote-40" name="linkHnoteref-40" id="linkHnoteref-40">40</a> + who laid at his feet twelve large vases, filled with robes of silk and + pieces of gold. The fathers of Basil aspired to the glory of reducing the + Greeks, as well as the Bohemians, within the pale of the church; and their + deputies invited the emperor and patriarch of Constantinople to unite with + an assembly which possessed the confidence of the Western nations. + Palæologus was not averse to the proposal; and his ambassadors were + introduced with due honors into the Catholic senate. But the choice of the + place appeared to be an insuperable obstacle, since he refused to pass the + Alps, or the sea of Sicily, and positively required that the synod should + be adjourned to some convenient city in Italy, or at least on the Danube. + The other articles of this treaty were more readily stipulated: it was + agreed to defray the travelling expenses of the emperor, with a train of + seven hundred persons, <a href="#linkHnote-41" name="linkHnoteref-41" + id="linkHnoteref-41">41</a> to remit an immediate sum of eight thousand + ducats <a href="#linkHnote-42" name="linkHnoteref-42" id="linkHnoteref-42">42</a> + for the accommodation of the Greek clergy; and in his absence to grant a + supply of ten thousand ducats, with three hundred archers and some + galleys, for the protection of Constantinople. The city of Avignon + advanced the funds for the preliminary expenses; and the embarkation was + prepared at Marseilles with some difficulty and delay. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-36" id="linkHnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ In the treatise delle + Materie Beneficiarie of Fra Paolo, (in the ivth volume of the last, and + best, edition of his works,) the papal system is deeply studied and freely + described. Should Rome and her religion be annihilated, this golden volume + may still survive, a philosophical history, and a salutary warning.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-37" id="linkHnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ Pope John XXII. (in + 1334) left behind him, at Avignon, eighteen millions of gold florins, and + the value of seven millions more in plate and jewels. See the Chronicle of + John Villani, (l. xi. c. 20, in Muratori's Collection, tom. xiii. p. 765,) + whose brother received the account from the papal treasurers. A treasure + of six or eight millions sterling in the xivth century is enormous, and + almost incredible.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-38" id="linkHnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ A learned and liberal + Protestant, M. Lenfant, has given a fair history of the councils of Pisa, + Constance, and Basil, in six volumes in quarto; but the last part is the + most hasty and imperfect, except in the account of the troubles of + Bohemia.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-39" id="linkHnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ The original acts or + minutes of the council of Basil are preserved in the public library, in + twelve volumes in folio. Basil was a free city, conveniently situate on + the Rhine, and guarded by the arms of the neighboring and confederate + Swiss. In 1459, the university was founded by Pope Pius II., (Æneas + Sylvius,) who had been secretary to the council. But what is a council, or + a university, to the presses o Froben and the studies of Erasmus?] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-40" id="linkHnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ This Turkish embassy, + attested only by Crantzius, is related with some doubt by the annalist + Spondanus, A.D. 1433, No. 25, tom. i. p. 824.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-41" id="linkHnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ Syropulus, p. 19. In + this list, the Greeks appear to have exceeded the real numbers of the + clergy and laity which afterwards attended the emperor and patriarch, but + which are not clearly specified by the great ecclesiarch. The 75,000 + florins which they asked in this negotiation of the pope, (p. 9,) were + more than they could hope or want.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-42" id="linkHnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ I use indifferently the + words <i>ducat</i> and <i>florin</i>, which derive their names, the former + from the <i>dukes</i> of Milan, the latter from the republic of <i>Florence</i>. + These gold pieces, the first that were coined in Italy, perhaps in the + Latin world, may be compared in weight and value to one third of the + English guinea.] + </p> + <p> + In his distress, the friendship of Palæologus was disputed by the + ecclesiastical powers of the West; but the dexterous activity of a monarch + prevailed over the slow debates and inflexible temper of a republic. The + decrees of Basil continually tended to circumscribe the despotism of the + pope, and to erect a supreme and perpetual tribunal in the church. + Eugenius was impatient of the yoke; and the union of the Greeks might + afford a decent pretence for translating a rebellious synod from the Rhine + to the Po. The independence of the fathers was lost if they passed the + Alps: Savoy or Avignon, to which they acceded with reluctance, were + described at Constantinople as situate far beyond the pillars of Hercules; + <a href="#linkHnote-43" name="linkHnoteref-43" id="linkHnoteref-43">43</a> + the emperor and his clergy were apprehensive of the dangers of a long + navigation; they were offended by a haughty declaration, that after + suppressing the <i>new</i> heresy of the Bohemians, the council would soon + eradicate the <i>old</i> heresy of the Greeks. <a href="#linkHnote-44" + name="linkHnoteref-44" id="linkHnoteref-44">44</a> On the side of + Eugenius, all was smooth, and yielding, and respectful; and he invited the + Byzantine monarch to heal by his presence the schism of the Latin, as well + as of the Eastern, church. Ferrara, near the coast of the Adriatic, was + proposed for their amicable interview; and with some indulgence of forgery + and theft, a surreptitious decree was procured, which transferred the + synod, with its own consent, to that Italian city. Nine galleys were + equipped for the service at Venice, and in the Isle of Candia; their + diligence anticipated the slower vessels of Basil: the Roman admiral was + commissioned to burn, sink, and destroy; <a href="#linkHnote-45" + name="linkHnoteref-45" id="linkHnoteref-45">45</a> and these priestly + squadrons might have encountered each other in the same seas where Athens + and Sparta had formerly contended for the preeminence of glory. Assaulted + by the importunity of the factions, who were ready to fight for the + possession of his person, Palæologus hesitated before he left his palace + and country on a perilous experiment. His father's advice still dwelt on + his memory; and reason must suggest, that since the Latins were divided + among themselves, they could never unite in a foreign cause. Sigismond + dissuaded the unreasonable adventure; his advice was impartial, since he + adhered to the council; and it was enforced by the strange belief, that + the German Cæsar would nominate a Greek his heir and successor in the + empire of the West. <a href="#linkHnote-46" name="linkHnoteref-46" + id="linkHnoteref-46">46</a> Even the Turkish sultan was a counsellor whom + it might be unsafe to trust, but whom it was dangerous to offend. Amurath + was unskilled in the disputes, but he was apprehensive of the union, of + the Christians. From his own treasures, he offered to relieve the wants of + the Byzantine court; yet he declared with seeming magnanimity, that + Constantinople should be secure and inviolate, in the absence of her + sovereign. <a href="#linkHnote-47" name="linkHnoteref-47" + id="linkHnoteref-47">47</a> The resolution of Palæologus was decided by + the most splendid gifts and the most specious promises: he wished to + escape for a while from a scene of danger and distress and after + dismissing with an ambiguous answer the messengers of the council, he + declared his intention of embarking in the Roman galleys. The age of the + patriarch Joseph was more susceptible of fear than of hope; he trembled at + the perils of the sea, and expressed his apprehension, that his feeble + voice, with thirty perhaps of his orthodox brethren, would be oppressed in + a foreign land by the power and numbers of a Latin synod. He yielded to + the royal mandate, to the flattering assurance, that he would be heard as + the oracle of nations, and to the secret wish of learning from his brother + of the West, to deliver the church from the yoke of kings. <a + href="#linkHnote-48" name="linkHnoteref-48" id="linkHnoteref-48">48</a> + The five <i>cross-bearers</i>, or dignitaries, of St. Sophia, were bound + to attend his person; and one of these, the great ecclesiarch or preacher, + Sylvester Syropulus, <a href="#linkHnote-49" name="linkHnoteref-49" + id="linkHnoteref-49">49</a> has composed a free and curious history <a + href="#linkHnote-50" name="linkHnoteref-50" id="linkHnoteref-50">50</a> of + the <i>false</i> union. <a href="#linkHnote-51" name="linkHnoteref-51" + id="linkHnoteref-51">51</a> Of the clergy that reluctantly obeyed the + summons of the emperor and the patriarch, submission was the first duty, + and patience the most useful virtue. In a chosen list of twenty bishops, + we discover the metropolitan titles of Heracleæ and Cyzicus, Nice and + Nicomedia, Ephesus and Trebizond, and the personal merit of Mark and + Bessarion who, in the confidence of their learning and eloquence, were + promoted to the episcopal rank. Some monks and philosophers were named to + display the science and sanctity of the Greek church; and the service of + the choir was performed by a select band of singers and musicians. The + patriarchs of Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem, appeared by their + genuine or fictitious deputies; the primate of Russia represented a + national church, and the Greeks might contend with the Latins in the + extent of their spiritual empire. The precious vases of St. Sophia were + exposed to the winds and waves, that the patriarch might officiate with + becoming splendor: whatever gold the emperor could procure, was expended + in the massy ornaments of his bed and chariot; <a href="#linkHnote-52" + name="linkHnoteref-52" id="linkHnoteref-52">52</a> and while they affected + to maintain the prosperity of their ancient fortune, they quarrelled for + the division of fifteen thousand ducats, the first alms of the Roman + pontiff. After the necessary preparations, John Palæologus, with a + numerous train, accompanied by his brother Demetrius, and the most + respectable persons of the church and state, embarked in eight vessels + with sails and oars which steered through the Turkish Straits of Gallipoli + to the Archipelago, the Morea, and the Adriatic Gulf. <a + href="#linkHnote-53" name="linkHnoteref-53" id="linkHnoteref-53">53</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-43" id="linkHnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ At the end of the Latin + version of Phranzes, we read a long Greek epistle or declamation of George + of Trebizond, who advises the emperor to prefer Eugenius and Italy. He + treats with contempt the schismatic assembly of Basil, the Barbarians of + Gaul and Germany, who had conspired to transport the chair of St. Peter + beyond the Alps; oi aqlioi (says he) se kai thn meta sou sunodon exw tvn + 'Hrakleiwn sthlwn kai pera Gadhrwn exaxousi. Was Constantinople unprovided + with a map?] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-44" id="linkHnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ Syropulus (p. 26—31) + attests his own indignation, and that of his countrymen; and the Basil + deputies, who excused the rash declaration, could neither deny nor alter + an act of the council.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-45" id="linkHnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ Condolmieri, the pope's + nephew and admiral, expressly declared, oti orismon eceipara tou Papa ina + polemhsh opou an eurh ta katerga thV Sunodou, kai ei dunhqh, katadush, kai + ajanish. The naval orders of the synod were less peremptory, and, till the + hostile squadrons appeared, both parties tried to conceal their quarrel + from the Greeks.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-46" id="linkHnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ Syropulus mentions the + hopes of Palæologus, (p. 36,) and the last advice of Sigismond,(p. 57.) At + Corfu, the Greek emperor was informed of his friend's death; had he known + it sooner, he would have returned home,(p. 79.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-47" id="linkHnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ Phranzes himself, though + from different motives, was of the advice of Amurath, (l. ii. c. 13.) + Utinam ne synodus ista unquam fuisset, si tantes offensiones et detrimenta + paritura erat. This Turkish embassy is likewise mentioned by Syropulus, + (p. 58;) and Amurath kept his word. He might threaten, (p. 125, 219,) but + he never attacked, the city.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-48" id="linkHnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ The reader will smile at + the simplicity with which he imparted these hopes to his favorites: + toiauthn plhrojorian schsein hlpize kai dia tou Papa eqarrei eleuqervdai + thn ekklhsian apo thV apoteqeishV autou douleiaV para tou basilewV, (p. + 92.) Yet it would have been difficult for him to have practised the + lessons of Gregory VII.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-49" id="linkHnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ The Christian name of + Sylvester is borrowed from the Latin calendar. In modern Greek, pouloV, as + a diminutive, is added to the end of words: nor can any reasoning of + Creyghton, the editor, excuse his changing into S<i>gur</i>opulus, + (Sguros, fuscus,) the Syropulus of his own manuscript, whose name is + subscribed with his own hand in the acts of the council of Florence. Why + might not the author be of Syrian extraction?] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-50" id="linkHnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ From the conclusion of + the history, I should fix the date to the year 1444, four years after the + synod, when great ecclesiarch had abdicated his office, (section xii. p. + 330—350.) His passions were cooled by time and retirement; and, + although Syropulus is often partial, he is never intemperate.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-51" id="linkHnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ <i>Vera historia unionis + non ver inter Græcos et Latinos</i>, (<i>Haga Comitis</i>, 1660, in + folio,) was first published with a loose and florid version, by Robert + Creyghton, chaplain to Charles II. in his exile. The zeal of the editor + has prefixed a polemic title, for the beginning of the original is + wanting. Syropulus may be ranked with the best of the Byzantine writers + for the merit of his narration, and even of his style; but he is excluded + from the orthodox collections of the councils.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-52" id="linkHnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ Syropulus (p. 63) simply + expresses his intention in' outw pompawn en' 'ItaloiV megaV basileuV par + ekeinvn nomizoito; and the Latin of Creyghton may afford a specimen of his + florid paraphrase. Ut pompâ circumductus noster Imperator Italiæ populis + aliquis deauratus Jupiter crederetur, aut Crsus ex opulenta Lydia.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-53" id="linkHnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ Although I cannot stop + to quote Syropulus for every fact, I will observe that the navigation of + the Greeks from Constantinople to Venice and Ferrara is contained in the + ivth section, (p. 67—100,) and that the historian has the uncommon + talent of placing each scene before the reader's eye.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkH2HCH0003" id="linkH2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXVI: Union Of The Greek And Latin Churches.—Part III. + </h2> + <p> + After a tedious and troublesome navigation of seventy-seven days, this + religious squadron cast anchor before Venice; and their reception + proclaimed the joy and magnificence of that powerful republic. In the + command of the world, the modest Augustus had never claimed such honors + from his subjects as were paid to his feeble successor by an independent + state. Seated on the poop on a lofty throne, he received the visit, or, in + the Greek style, the <i>adoration</i> of the doge and senators. <a + href="#linkHnote-54" name="linkHnoteref-54" id="linkHnoteref-54">54</a> + They sailed in the Bucentaur, which was accompanied by twelve stately + galleys: the sea was overspread with innumerable gondolas of pomp and + pleasure; the air resounded with music and acclamations; the mariners, and + even the vessels, were dressed in silk and gold; and in all the emblems + and pageants, the Roman eagles were blended with the lions of St. Mark. + The triumphal procession, ascending the great canal, passed under the + bridge of the Rialto; and the Eastern strangers gazed with admiration on + the palaces, the churches, and the populousness of a city, that seems to + float on the bosom of the waves. <a href="#linkHnote-55" + name="linkHnoteref-55" id="linkHnoteref-55">55</a> They sighed to behold + the spoils and trophies with which it had been decorated after the sack of + Constantinople. After a hospitable entertainment of fifteen days, + Palæologus pursued his journey by land and water from Venice to Ferrara; + and on this occasion the pride of the Vatican was tempered by policy to + indulge the ancient dignity of the emperor of the East. He made his entry + on a <i>black</i> horse; but a milk-white steed, whose trappings were + embroidered with golden eagles, was led before him; and the canopy was + borne over his head by the princes of Este, the sons or kinsmen of + Nicholas, marquis of the city, and a sovereign more powerful than himself. + <a href="#linkHnote-56" name="linkHnoteref-56" id="linkHnoteref-56">56</a> + Palæologus did not alight till he reached the bottom of the staircase: the + pope advanced to the door of the apartment; refused his proffered + genuflection; and, after a paternal embrace, conducted the emperor to a + seat on his left hand. Nor would the patriarch descend from his galley, + till a ceremony almost equal, had been stipulated between the bishops of + Rome and Constantinople. The latter was saluted by his brother with a kiss + of union and charity; nor would any of the Greek ecclesiastics submit to + kiss the feet of the Western primate. On the opening of the synod, the + place of honor in the centre was claimed by the temporal and + ecclesiastical chiefs; and it was only by alleging that his predecessors + had not assisted in person at Nice or Chalcedon, that Eugenius could evade + the ancient precedents of Constantine and Marcian. After much debate, it + was agreed that the right and left sides of the church should be occupied + by the two nations; that the solitary chair of St. Peter should be raised + the first of the Latin line; and that the throne of the Greek emperor, at + the head of his clergy, should be equal and opposite to the second place, + the vacant seat of the emperor of the West. <a href="#linkHnote-57" + name="linkHnoteref-57" id="linkHnoteref-57">57</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-54" id="linkHnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ At the time of the + synod, Phranzes was in Peloponnesus: but he received from the despot + Demetrius a faithful account of the honorable reception of the emperor and + patriarch both at Venice and Ferrara, (Dux.... sedentem Imperatorem <i>adorat</i>,) + which are more slightly mentioned by the Latins, (l. ii. c. 14, 15, 16.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-55" id="linkHnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ The astonishment of a + Greek prince and a French ambassador (Mémoires de Philippe de Comines, l. + vii. c. 18,) at the sight of Venice, abundantly proves that in the xvth + century it was the first and most splendid of the Christian cities. For + the spoils of Constantinople at Venice, see Syropulus, (p. 87.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-56" id="linkHnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicholas III. of Este + reigned forty-eight years, (A.D. 1393—1441,) and was lord of + Ferrara, Modena, Reggio, Parma, Rovigo, and Commachio. See his Life in + Muratori, (Antichità Estense, tom. ii. p. 159—201.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-57" id="linkHnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ The Latin vulgar was + provoked to laughter at the strange dresses of the Greeks, and especially + the length of their garments, their sleeves, and their beards; nor was the + emperor distinguished, except by the purple color, and his diadem or + tiara, with a jewel on the top, (Hody de Græcis Illustribus, p. 31.) Yet + another spectator confesses that the Greek fashion was piu grave e piu + degna than the Italian. (Vespasiano in Vit. Eugen. IV. in Muratori, tom. + xxv. p. 261.)] + </p> + <p> + But as soon as festivity and form had given place to a more serious + treaty, the Greeks were dissatisfied with their journey, with themselves, + and with the pope. The artful pencil of his emissaries had painted him in + a prosperous state; at the head of the princes and prelates of Europe, + obedient at his voice, to believe and to arm. The thin appearance of the + universal synod of Ferrara betrayed his weakness: and the Latins opened + the first session with only five archbishops, eighteen bishops, and ten + abbots, the greatest part of whom were the subjects or countrymen of the + Italian pontiff. Except the duke of Burgundy, none of the potentates of + the West condescended to appear in person, or by their ambassadors; nor + was it possible to suppress the judicial acts of Basil against the dignity + and person of Eugenius, which were finally concluded by a new election. + Under these circumstances, a truce or delay was asked and granted, till + Palæologus could expect from the consent of the Latins some temporal + reward for an unpopular union; and after the first session, the public + proceedings were adjourned above six months. The emperor, with a chosen + band of his favorites and <i>Janizaries</i>, fixed his summer residence at + a pleasant, spacious monastery, six miles from Ferrara; forgot, in the + pleasures of the chase, the distress of the church and state; and + persisted in destroying the game, without listening to the just complaints + of the marquis or the husbandman. <a href="#linkHnote-58" + name="linkHnoteref-58" id="linkHnoteref-58">58</a> In the mean while, his + unfortunate Greeks were exposed to all the miseries of exile and poverty; + for the support of each stranger, a monthly allowance was assigned of + three or four gold florins; and although the entire sum did not amount to + seven hundred florins, a long arrear was repeatedly incurred by the + indigence or policy of the Roman court. <a href="#linkHnote-59" + name="linkHnoteref-59" id="linkHnoteref-59">59</a> They sighed for a + speedy deliverance, but their escape was prevented by a triple chain: a + passport from their superiors was required at the gates of Ferrara; the + government of Venice had engaged to arrest and send back the fugitives; + and inevitable punishment awaited them at Constantinople; excommunication, + fines, and a sentence, which did not respect the sacerdotal dignity, that + they should be stripped naked and publicly whipped. <a href="#linkHnote-60" + name="linkHnoteref-60" id="linkHnoteref-60">60</a> It was only by the + alternative of hunger or dispute that the Greeks could be persuaded to + open the first conference; and they yielded with extreme reluctance to + attend from Ferrara to Florence the rear of a flying synod. This new + translation was urged by inevitable necessity: the city was visited by the + plague; the fidelity of the marquis might be suspected; the mercenary + troops of the duke of Milan were at the gates; and as they occupied + Romagna, it was not without difficulty and danger that the pope, the + emperor, and the bishops, explored their way through the unfrequented + paths of the Apennine. <a href="#linkHnote-61" name="linkHnoteref-61" + id="linkHnoteref-61">61</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-58" id="linkHnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ For the emperor's + hunting, see Syropulus, (p. 143, 144, 191.) The pope had sent him eleven + miserable hacks; but he bought a strong and swift horse that came from + Russia. The name of <i>Janizaries</i> may surprise; but the name, rather + than the institution, had passed from the Ottoman, to the Byzantine, + court, and is often used in the last age of the empire.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-59" id="linkHnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ The Greeks obtained, + with much difficulty, that instead of provisions, money should be + distributed, four florins <i>per</i> month to the persons of honorable + rank, and three florins to their servants, with an addition of thirty more + to the emperor, twenty-five to the patriarch, and twenty to the prince, or + despot, Demetrius. The payment of the first month amounted to 691 florins, + a sum which will not allow us to reckon above 200 Greeks of every + condition. (Syropulus, p. 104, 105.) On the 20th October, 1438, there was + an arrear of four months; in April, 1439, of three; and of five and a half + in July, at the time of the union, (p. 172, 225, 271.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-60" id="linkHnote-60"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 60 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-60">return</a>)<br /> [ Syropulus (p. 141, 142, + 204, 221) deplores the imprisonment of the Greeks, and the tyranny of the + emperor and patriarch.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-61" id="linkHnote-61"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 61 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-61">return</a>)<br /> [ The wars of Italy are + most clearly represented in the xiiith vol. of the Annals of Muratori. The + schismatic Greek, Syropulus, (p. 145,) appears to have exaggerated the + fear and disorder of the pope in his retreat from Ferrara to Florence, + which is proved by the acts to have been somewhat more decent and + deliberate.] + </p> + <p> + Yet all these obstacles were surmounted by time and policy. The violence + of the fathers of Basil rather promoted than injured the cause of + Eugenius; the nations of Europe abhorred the schism, and disowned the + election, of Felix the Fifth, who was successively a duke of Savoy, a + hermit, and a pope; and the great princes were gradually reclaimed by his + competitor to a favorable neutrality and a firm attachment. The legates, + with some respectable members, deserted to the Roman army, which + insensibly rose in numbers and reputation; the council of Basil was + reduced to thirty-nine bishops, and three hundred of the inferior clergy; + <a href="#linkHnote-62" name="linkHnoteref-62" id="linkHnoteref-62">62</a> + while the Latins of Florence could produce the subscriptions of the pope + himself, eight cardinals, two patriarchs, eight archbishops, fifty two + bishops, and forty-five abbots, or chiefs of religious orders. After the + labor of nine months, and the debates of twenty-five sessions, they + attained the advantage and glory of the reunion of the Greeks. Four + principal questions had been agitated between the two churches; <i>1.</i> + The use of unleavened bread in the communion of Christ's body. <i>2.</i> + The nature of purgatory. <i>3.</i> The supremacy of the pope. And, <i>4.</i> + The single or double procession of the Holy Ghost. The cause of either + nation was managed by ten theological champions: the Latins were supported + by the inexhaustible eloquence of Cardinal Julian; and Mark of Ephesus and + Bessarion of Nice were the bold and able leaders of the Greek forces. We + may bestow some praise on the progress of human reason, by observing that + the first of these questions was now treated as an immaterial rite, which + might innocently vary with the fashion of the age and country. With regard + to the second, both parties were agreed in the belief of an intermediate + state of purgation for the venial sins of the faithful; and whether their + souls were purified by elemental fire was a doubtful point, which in a few + years might be conveniently settled on the spot by the disputants. The + claims of supremacy appeared of a more weighty and substantial kind; yet + by the Orientals the Roman bishop had ever been respected as the first of + the five patriarchs; nor did they scruple to admit, that his jurisdiction + should be exercised agreeably to the holy canons; a vague allowance, which + might be defined or eluded by occasional convenience. The procession of + the Holy Ghost from the Father alone, or from the Father and the Son, was + an article of faith which had sunk much deeper into the minds of men; and + in the sessions of Ferrara and Florence, the Latin addition of <i>filioque</i> + was subdivided into two questions, whether it were legal, and whether it + were orthodox. Perhaps it may not be necessary to boast on this subject of + my own impartial indifference; but I must think that the Greeks were + strongly supported by the prohibition of the council of Chalcedon, against + adding any article whatsoever to the creed of Nice, or rather of + Constantinople. <a href="#linkHnote-63" name="linkHnoteref-63" + id="linkHnoteref-63">63</a> In earthly affairs, it is not easy to conceive + how an assembly equal of legislators can bind their successors invested + with powers equal to their own. But the dictates of inspiration must be + true and unchangeable; nor should a private bishop, or a provincial synod, + have presumed to innovate against the judgment of the Catholic church. On + the substance of the doctrine, the controversy was equal and endless: + reason is confounded by the procession of a deity: the gospel, which lay + on the altar, was silent; the various texts of the fathers might be + corrupted by fraud or entangled by sophistry; and the Greeks were ignorant + of the characters and writings of the Latin saints. <a href="#linkHnote-64" + name="linkHnoteref-64" id="linkHnoteref-64">64</a> Of this at least we may + be sure, that neither side could be convinced by the arguments of their + opponents. Prejudice may be enlightened by reason, and a superficial + glance may be rectified by a clear and more perfect view of an object + adapted to our faculties. But the bishops and monks had been taught from + their infancy to repeat a form of mysterious words: their national and + personal honor depended on the repetition of the same sounds; and their + narrow minds were hardened and inflamed by the acrimony of a public + dispute. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-62" id="linkHnote-62"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 62 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-62">return</a>)<br /> [ Syropulus is pleased to + reckon seven hundred prelates in the council of Basil. The error is + manifest, and perhaps voluntary. That extravagant number could not be + supplied by <i>all</i> the ecclesiastics of every degree who were present + at the council, nor by <i>all</i> the absent bishops of the West, who, + expressly or tacitly, might adhere to its decrees.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-63" id="linkHnote-63"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 63 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-63">return</a>)<br /> [ The Greeks, who disliked + the union, were unwilling to sally from this strong fortress, (p. 178, + 193, 195, 202, of Syropulus.) The shame of the Latins was aggravated by + their producing an old MS. of the second council of Nice, with <i>filioque</i> + in the Nicene creed. A palpable forgery! (p. 173.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-64" id="linkHnote-64"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 64 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-64">return</a>)<br /> [ 'WV egw (said an eminent + Greek) otan eiV naon eiselqw Datinwn ou proskunv tina tvn ekeise agiwn, + epei oude gnwrizw tina, (Syropulus, p. 109.) See the perplexity of the + Greeks, (p. 217, 218, 252, 253, 273.)] + </p> + <p> + While they were most in a cloud of dust and darkness, the Pope and emperor + were desirous of a seeming union, which could alone accomplish the + purposes of their interview; and the obstinacy of public dispute was + softened by the arts of private and personal negotiation. The patriarch + Joseph had sunk under the weight of age and infirmities; his dying voice + breathed the counsels of charity and concord, and his vacant benefice + might tempt the hopes of the ambitious clergy. The ready and active + obedience of the archbishops of Russia and Nice, of Isidore and Bessarion, + was prompted and recompensed by their speedy promotion to the dignity of + cardinals. Bessarion, in the first debates, had stood forth the most + strenuous and eloquent champion of the Greek church; and if the apostate, + the bastard, was reprobated by his country, <a href="#linkHnote-65" + name="linkHnoteref-65" id="linkHnoteref-65">65</a> he appears in + ecclesiastical story a rare example of a patriot who was recommended to + court favor by loud opposition and well-timed compliance. With the aid of + his two spiritual coadjutors, the emperor applied his arguments to the + general situation and personal characters of the bishops, and each was + successively moved by authority and example. Their revenues were in the + hands of the Turks, their persons in those of the Latins: an episcopal + treasure, three robes and forty ducats, was soon exhausted: <a + href="#linkHnote-66" name="linkHnoteref-66" id="linkHnoteref-66">66</a> + the hopes of their return still depended on the ships of Venice and the + alms of Rome; and such was their indigence, that their arrears, the + payment of a debt, would be accepted as a favor, and might operate as a + bribe. <a href="#linkHnote-67" name="linkHnoteref-67" id="linkHnoteref-67">67</a> + The danger and relief of Constantinople might excuse some prudent and + pious dissimulation; and it was insinuated, that the obstinate heretics + who should resist the consent of the East and West would be abandoned in a + hostile land to the revenge or justice of the Roman pontiff. <a + href="#linkHnote-68" name="linkHnoteref-68" id="linkHnoteref-68">68</a> In + the first private assembly of the Greeks, the formulary of union was + approved by twenty-four, and rejected by twelve, members; but the five <i>cross-bearers</i> + of St. Sophia, who aspired to represent the patriarch, were disqualified + by ancient discipline; and their right of voting was transferred to the + obsequious train of monks, grammarians, and profane laymen. The will of + the monarch produced a false and servile unanimity, and no more than two + patriots had courage to speak their own sentiments and those of their + country. Demetrius, the emperor's brother, retired to Venice, that he + might not be witness of the union; and Mark of Ephesus, mistaking perhaps + his pride for his conscience, disclaimed all communion with the Latin + heretics, and avowed himself the champion and confessor of the orthodox + creed. <a href="#linkHnote-69" name="linkHnoteref-69" id="linkHnoteref-69">69</a> + In the treaty between the two nations, several forms of consent were + proposed, such as might satisfy the Latins, without dishonoring the + Greeks; and they weighed the scruples of words and syllables, till the + theological balance trembled with a slight preponderance in favor of the + Vatican. It was agreed (I must entreat the attention of the reader) that + the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father <i>and</i> the Son, as from one + principle and one substance; that he proceeds <i>by</i> the Son, being of + the same nature and substance, and that he proceeds from the Father <i>and</i> + the Son, by one <i>spiration</i> and production. It is less difficult to + understand the articles of the preliminary treaty; that the pope should + defray all the expenses of the Greeks in their return home; that he should + annually maintain two galleys and three hundred soldiers for the defence + of Constantinople: that all the ships which transported pilgrims to + Jerusalem should be obliged to touch at that port; that as often as they + were required, the pope should furnish ten galleys for a year, or twenty + for six months; and that he should powerfully solicit the princes of + Europe, if the emperor had occasion for land forces. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-65" id="linkHnote-65"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 65 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-65">return</a>)<br /> [ See the polite + altercation of Marc and Bessarion in Syropulus, (p. 257,) who never + dissembles the vices of his own party, and fairly praises the virtues of + the Latins.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-66" id="linkHnote-66"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 66 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-66">return</a>)<br /> [ For the poverty of the + Greek bishops, see a remarkable passage of Ducas, (c. 31.) One had + possessed, for his whole property, three old gowns, &c. By teaching + one-and-twenty years in his monastery, Bessarion himself had collected + forty gold florins; but of these, the archbishop had expended twenty-eight + in his voyage from Peloponnesus, and the remainder at Constantinople, + (Syropulus, p. 127.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-67" id="linkHnote-67"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 67 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-67">return</a>)<br /> [ Syropulus denies that + the Greeks received any money before they had subscribed the art of union, + (p. 283:) yet he relates some suspicious circumstances; and their bribery + and corruption are positively affirmed by the historian Ducas.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-68" id="linkHnote-68"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 68 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-68">return</a>)<br /> [ The Greeks most + piteously express their own fears of exile and perpetual slavery, + (Syropul. p. 196;) and they were strongly moved by the emperor's threats, + (p. 260.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-69" id="linkHnote-69"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 69 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-69">return</a>)<br /> [ I had forgot another + popular and orthodox protester: a favorite bound, who usually lay quiet on + the foot-cloth of the emperor's throne but who barked most furiously while + the act of union was reading without being silenced by the soothing or the + lashes of the royal attendants, (Syropul. p. 265, 266.)] + </p> + <p> + The same year, and almost the same day, were marked by the deposition of + Eugenius at Basil; and, at Florence, by his reunion of the Greeks and + Latins. In the former synod, (which he styled indeed an assembly of + dæmons,) the pope was branded with the guilt of simony, perjury, tyranny, + heresy, and schism; <a href="#linkHnote-70" name="linkHnoteref-70" + id="linkHnoteref-70">70</a> and declared to be incorrigible in his vices, + unworthy of any title, and incapable of holding any ecclesiastical office. + In the latter, he was revered as the true and holy vicar of Christ, who, + after a separation of six hundred years, had reconciled the Catholics of + the East and West in one fold, and under one shepherd. The act of union + was subscribed by the pope, the emperor, and the principal members of both + churches; even by those who, like Syropulus, <a href="#linkHnote-71" + name="linkHnoteref-71" id="linkHnoteref-71">71</a> had been deprived of + the right of voting. Two copies might have sufficed for the East and West; + but Eugenius was not satisfied, unless four authentic and similar + transcripts were signed and attested as the monuments of his victory. <a + href="#linkHnote-72" name="linkHnoteref-72" id="linkHnoteref-72">72</a> On + a memorable day, the sixth of July, the successors of St. Peter and + Constantine ascended their thrones the two nations assembled in the + cathedral of Florence; their representatives, Cardinal Julian and + Bessarion archbishop of Nice, appeared in the pulpit, and, after reading + in their respective tongues the act of union, they mutually embraced, in + the name and the presence of their applauding brethren. The pope and his + ministers then officiated according to the Roman liturgy; the creed was + chanted with the addition of <i>filioque</i>; the acquiescence of the + Greeks was poorly excused by their ignorance of the harmonious, but + inarticulate sounds; <a href="#linkHnote-73" name="linkHnoteref-73" + id="linkHnoteref-73">73</a> and the more scrupulous Latins refused any + public celebration of the Byzantine rite. Yet the emperor and his clergy + were not totally unmindful of national honor. The treaty was ratified by + their consent: it was tacitly agreed that no innovation should be + attempted in their creed or ceremonies: they spared, and secretly + respected, the generous firmness of Mark of Ephesus; and, on the decease + of the patriarch, they refused to elect his successor, except in the + cathedral of St. Sophia. In the distribution of public and private + rewards, the liberal pontiff exceeded their hopes and his promises: the + Greeks, with less pomp and pride, returned by the same road of Ferrara and + Venice; and their reception at Constantinople was such as will be + described in the following chapter. <a href="#linkHnote-74" + name="linkHnoteref-74" id="linkHnoteref-74">74</a> The success of the + first trial encouraged Eugenius to repeat the same edifying scenes; and + the deputies of the Armenians, the Maronites, the Jacobites of Syria and + Egypt, the Nestorians and the Æthiopians, were successively introduced, to + kiss the feet of the Roman pontiff, and to announce the obedience and the + orthodoxy of the East. These Oriental embassies, unknown in the countries + which they presumed to represent, <a href="#linkHnote-75" + name="linkHnoteref-75" id="linkHnoteref-75">75</a> diffused over the West + the fame of Eugenius; and a clamor was artfully propagated against the + remnant of a schism in Switzerland and Savoy, which alone impeded the + harmony of the Christian world. The vigor of opposition was succeeded by + the lassitude of despair: the council of Basil was silently dissolved; and + Felix, renouncing the tiara, again withdrew to the devout or delicious + hermitage of Ripaille. <a href="#linkHnote-76" name="linkHnoteref-76" + id="linkHnoteref-76">76</a> A general peace was secured by mutual acts of + oblivion and indemnity: all ideas of reformation subsided; the popes + continued to exercise and abuse their ecclesiastical despotism; nor has + Rome been since disturbed by the mischiefs of a contested election. <a + href="#linkHnote-77" name="linkHnoteref-77" id="linkHnoteref-77">77</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-70" id="linkHnote-70"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 70 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-70">return</a>)<br /> [ From the original Lives + of the Popes, in Muratori's Collection, (tom. iii. p. ii. tom. xxv.,) the + manners of Eugenius IV. appear to have been decent, and even exemplary. + His situation, exposed to the world and to his enemies, was a restraint, + and is a pledge.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-71" id="linkHnote-71"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 71 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-71">return</a>)<br /> [ Syropulus, rather than + subscribe, would have assisted, as the least evil, at the ceremony of the + union. He was compelled to do both; and the great ecclesiarch poorly + excuses his submission to the emperor, (p. 290—292.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-72" id="linkHnote-72"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 72 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-72">return</a>)<br /> [ None of these original + acts of union can at present be produced. Of the ten MSS. that are + preserved, (five at Rome, and the remainder at Florence, Bologna, Venice, + Paris, and London,) nine have been examined by an accurate critic, (M. de + Brequigny,) who condemns them for the variety and imperfections of the + Greek signatures. Yet several of these may be esteemed as authentic + copies, which were subscribed at Florence, before (26th of August, 1439) + the final separation of the pope and emperor, (Mémoires de l'Académie des + Inscriptions, tom. xliii. p. 287—311.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-73" id="linkHnote-73"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 73 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-73">return</a>)<br /> [ Hmin de wV ashmoi + edokoun jwnai, (Syropul. p. 297.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-74" id="linkHnote-74"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 74 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-74">return</a>)<br /> [ In their return, the + Greeks conversed at Bologna with the ambassadors of England: and after + some questions and answers, these impartial strangers laughed at the + pretended union of Florence, (Syropul. p. 307.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-75" id="linkHnote-75"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 75 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-75">return</a>)<br /> [ So nugatory, or rather + so fabulous, are these reunions of the Nestorians, Jacobites, &c., + that I have turned over, without success, the Bibliotheca Orientalis of + Assemannus, a faithful slave of the Vatican.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-76" id="linkHnote-76"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 76 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-76">return</a>)<br /> [ Ripaille is situate near + Thonon in Savoy, on the southern side of the Lake of Geneva. It is now a + Carthusian abbey; and Mr. Addison (Travels into Italy, vol. ii. p. 147, + 148, of Baskerville's edition of his works) has celebrated the place and + the founder. Æneas Sylvius, and the fathers of Basil, applaud the austere + life of the ducal hermit; but the French and Italian proverbs most + unluckily attest the popular opinion of his luxury.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-77" id="linkHnote-77"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 77 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-77">return</a>)<br /> [ In this account of the + councils of Basil, Ferrara, and Florence, I have consulted the original + acts, which fill the xviith and xviiith tome of the edition of Venice, and + are closed by the perspicuous, though partial, history of Augustin + Patricius, an Italian of the xvth century. They are digested and abridged + by Dupin, (Bibliothèque Ecclés. tom. xii.,) and the continuator of Fleury, + (tom. xxii.;) and the respect of the Gallican church for the adverse + parties confines their members to an awkward moderation.] + </p> + <p> + The journeys of three emperors were unavailing for their temporal, or + perhaps their spiritual, salvation; but they were productive of a + beneficial consequence—the revival of the Greek learning in Italy, + from whence it was propagated to the last nations of the West and North. + In their lowest servitude and depression, the subjects of the Byzantine + throne were still possessed of a golden key that could unlock the + treasures of antiquity; of a musical and prolific language, that gives a + soul to the objects of sense, and a body to the abstractions of + philosophy. Since the barriers of the monarchy, and even of the capital, + had been trampled under foot, the various Barbarians had doubtless + corrupted the form and substance of the national dialect; and ample + glossaries have been composed, to interpret a multitude of words, of + Arabic, Turkish, Sclavonian, Latin, or French origin. <a + href="#linkHnote-78" name="linkHnoteref-78" id="linkHnoteref-78">78</a> + But a purer idiom was spoken in the court and taught in the college; and + the flourishing state of the language is described, and perhaps + embellished, by a learned Italian, <a href="#linkHnote-79" + name="linkHnoteref-79" id="linkHnoteref-79">79</a> who, by a long + residence and noble marriage, <a href="#linkHnote-80" + name="linkHnoteref-80" id="linkHnoteref-80">80</a> was naturalized at + Constantinople about thirty years before the Turkish conquest. "The vulgar + speech," says Philelphus, <a href="#linkHnote-81" name="linkHnoteref-81" + id="linkHnoteref-81">81</a> "has been depraved by the people, and infected + by the multitude of strangers and merchants, who every day flock to the + city and mingle with the inhabitants. It is from the disciples of such a + school that the Latin language received the versions of Aristotle and + Plato; so obscure in sense, and in spirit so poor. But the Greeks who have + escaped the contagion, are those whom <i>we</i> follow; and they alone are + worthy of our imitation. In familiar discourse, they still speak the + tongue of Aristophanes and Euripides, of the historians and philosophers + of Athens; and the style of their writings is still more elaborate and + correct. The persons who, by their birth and offices, are attached to the + Byzantine court, are those who maintain, with the least alloy, the ancient + standard of elegance and purity; and the native graces of language most + conspicuously shine among the noble matrons, who are excluded from all + intercourse with foreigners. With foreigners do I say? They live retired + and sequestered from the eyes of their fellow-citizens. Seldom are they + seen in the streets; and when they leave their houses, it is in the dusk + of evening, on visits to the churches and their nearest kindred. On these + occasions, they are on horseback, covered with a veil, and encompassed by + their parents, their husbands, or their servants." <a href="#linkHnote-82" + name="linkHnoteref-82" id="linkHnoteref-82">82</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-78" id="linkHnote-78"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 78 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-78">return</a>)<br /> [ In the first attempt, + Meursius collected 3600 Græco-barbarous words, to which, in a second + edition, he subjoined 1800 more; yet what plenteous gleanings did he leave + to Portius, Ducange, Fabrotti, the Bollandists, &c.! (Fabric. Bibliot. + Græc. tom. x. p. 101, &c.) <i>Some</i> Persic words may be found in + Xenophon, and some Latin ones in Plutarch; and such is the inevitable + effect of war and commerce; but the form and substance of the language + were not affected by this slight alloy.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-79" id="linkHnote-79"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 79 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-79">return</a>)<br /> [ The life of Francis + Philelphus, a sophist, proud, restless, and rapacious, has been diligently + composed by Lancelot (Mémoires de l'Académie des Inscriptions, tom. x. p. + 691—751) (Istoria della Letteratura Italiana, tom. vii. p. 282—294,) + for the most part from his own letters. His elaborate writings, and those + of his contemporaries, are forgotten; but their familiar epistles still + describe the men and the times.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-80" id="linkHnote-80"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 80 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-80">return</a>)<br /> [ He married, and had + perhaps debauched, the daughter of John, and the granddaughter of Manuel + Chrysoloras. She was young, beautiful, and wealthy; and her noble family + was allied to the Dorias of Genoa and the emperors of Constantinople.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-81" id="linkHnote-81"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 81 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-81">return</a>)<br /> [ Græci quibus lingua + depravata non sit.... ita loquuntur vulgo hâc etiam tempestate ut + Aristophanes comicus, aut Euripides tragicus, ut oratores omnes, ut + historiographi, ut philosophi.... litterati autem homines et doctius et + emendatius.... Nam viri aulici veterem sermonis dignitatem atque + elegantiam retinebant in primisque ipsæ nobiles mulieres; quibus cum + nullum esset omnino cum viris peregrinis commercium, merus ille ac purus + Græcorum sermo servabatur intactus, (Philelph. Epist. ad ann. 1451, apud + Hodium, p. 188, 189.) He observes in another passage, uxor illa mea + Theodora locutione erat admodum moderatâ et suavi et maxime Atticâ.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-82" id="linkHnote-82"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 82 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-82">return</a>)<br /> [ Philelphus, absurdly + enough, derives this Greek or Oriental jealousy from the manners of + ancient Rome.] + </p> + <p> + Among the Greeks a numerous and opulent clergy was dedicated to the + service of religion: their monks and bishops have ever been distinguished + by the gravity and austerity of their manners; nor were they diverted, + like the Latin priests, by the pursuits and pleasures of a secular, and + even military, life. After a large deduction for the time and talent that + were lost in the devotion, the laziness, and the discord, of the church + and cloister, the more inquisitive and ambitious minds would explore the + sacred and profane erudition of their native language. The ecclesiastics + presided over the education of youth; the schools of philosophy and + eloquence were perpetuated till the fall of the empire; and it may be + affirmed, that more books and more knowledge were included within the + walls of Constantinople, than could be dispersed over the extensive + countries of the West. <a href="#linkHnote-83" name="linkHnoteref-83" + id="linkHnoteref-83">83</a> But an important distinction has been already + noticed: the Greeks were stationary or retrograde, while the Latins were + advancing with a rapid and progressive motion. The nations were excited by + the spirit of independence and emulation; and even the little world of the + Italian states contained more people and industry than the decreasing + circle of the Byzantine empire. In Europe, the lower ranks of society were + relieved from the yoke of feudal servitude; and freedom is the first step + to curiosity and knowledge. The use, however rude and corrupt, of the + Latin tongue had been preserved by superstition; the universities, from + Bologna to Oxford, <a href="#linkHnote-84" name="linkHnoteref-84" + id="linkHnoteref-84">84</a> were peopled with thousands of scholars; and + their misguided ardor might be directed to more liberal and manly studies. + In the resurrection of science, Italy was the first that cast away her + shroud; and the eloquent Petrarch, by his lessons and his example, may + justly be applauded as the first harbinger of day. A purer style of + composition, a more generous and rational strain of sentiment, flowed from + the study and imitation of the writers of ancient Rome; and the disciples + of Cicero and Virgil approached, with reverence and love, the sanctuary of + their Grecian masters. In the sack of Constantinople, the French, and even + the Venetians, had despised and destroyed the works of Lysippus and Homer: + the monuments of art may be annihilated by a single blow; but the immortal + mind is renewed and multiplied by the copies of the pen; and such copies + it was the ambition of Petrarch and his friends to possess and understand. + The arms of the Turks undoubtedly pressed the flight of the Muses; yet we + may tremble at the thought, that Greece might have been overwhelmed, with + her schools and libraries, before Europe had emerged from the deluge of + barbarism; that the seeds of science might have been scattered by the + winds, before the Italian soil was prepared for their cultivation. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-83" id="linkHnote-83"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 83 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-83">return</a>)<br /> [ See the state of + learning in the xiiith and xivth centuries, in the learned and judicious + Mosheim, (Instit. Hist. Ecclés. p. 434—440, 490—494.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-84" id="linkHnote-84"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 84 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-84">return</a>)<br /> [ At the end of the xvth + century, there existed in Europe about fifty universities, and of these + the foundation of ten or twelve is prior to the year 1300. They were + crowded in proportion to their scarcity. Bologna contained 10,000 + students, chiefly of the civil law. In the year 1357 the number at Oxford + had decreased from 30,000 to 6000 scholars, (Henry's History of Great + Britain, vol. iv. p. 478.) Yet even this decrease is much superior to the + present list of the members of the university.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkH2HCH0004" id="linkH2HCH0004"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXVI: Union Of The Greek And Latin Churches.—Part IV. + </h2> + <p> + The most learned Italians of the fifteenth century have confessed and + applauded the restoration of Greek literature, after a long oblivion of + many hundred years. <a href="#linkHnote-85" name="linkHnoteref-85" + id="linkHnoteref-85">85</a> Yet in that country, and beyond the Alps, some + names are quoted; some profound scholars, who in the darker ages were + honorably distinguished by their knowledge of the Greek tongue; and + national vanity has been loud in the praise of such rare examples of + erudition. Without scrutinizing the merit of individuals, truth must + observe, that their science is without a cause, and without an effect; + that it was easy for them to satisfy themselves and their more ignorant + contemporaries; and that the idiom, which they had so marvellously + acquired was transcribed in few manuscripts, and was not taught in any + university of the West. In a corner of Italy, it faintly existed as the + popular, or at least as the ecclesiastical dialect. <a href="#linkHnote-86" + name="linkHnoteref-86" id="linkHnoteref-86">86</a> The first impression of + the Doric and Ionic colonies has never been completely erased: the + Calabrian churches were long attached to the throne of Constantinople: and + the monks of St. Basil pursued their studies in Mount Athos and the + schools of the East. Calabria was the native country of Barlaam, who has + already appeared as a sectary and an ambassador; and Barlaam was the first + who revived, beyond the Alps, the memory, or at least the writings, of + Homer. <a href="#linkHnote-87" name="linkHnoteref-87" id="linkHnoteref-87">87</a> + He is described, by Petrarch and Boccace, <a href="#linkHnote-88" + name="linkHnoteref-88" id="linkHnoteref-88">88</a> as a man of diminutive + stature, though truly great in the measure of learning and genius; of a + piercing discernment, though of a slow and painful elocution. For many + ages (as they affirm) Greece had not produced his equal in the knowledge + of history, grammar, and philosophy; and his merit was celebrated in the + attestations of the princes and doctors of Constantinople. One of these + attestations is still extant; and the emperor Cantacuzene, the protector + of his adversaries, is forced to allow, that Euclid, Aristotle, and Plato, + were familiar to that profound and subtle logician. <a href="#linkHnote-89" + name="linkHnoteref-89" id="linkHnoteref-89">89</a> In the court of + Avignon, he formed an intimate connection with Petrarch, <a + href="#linkHnote-90" name="linkHnoteref-90" id="linkHnoteref-90">90</a> + the first of the Latin scholars; and the desire of mutual instruction was + the principle of their literary commerce. The Tuscan applied himself with + eager curiosity and assiduous diligence to the study of the Greek + language; and in a laborious struggle with the dryness and difficulty of + the first rudiments, he began to reach the sense, and to feel the spirit, + of poets and philosophers, whose minds were congenial to his own. But he + was soon deprived of the society and lessons of this useful assistant: + Barlaam relinquished his fruitless embassy; and, on his return to Greece, + he rashly provoked the swarms of fanatic monks, by attempting to + substitute the light of reason to that of their navel. After a separation + of three years, the two friends again met in the court of Naples: but the + generous pupil renounced the fairest occasion of improvement; and by his + recommendation Barlaam was finally settled in a small bishopric of his + native Calabria. <a href="#linkHnote-91" name="linkHnoteref-91" + id="linkHnoteref-91">91</a> The manifold avocations of Petrarch, love and + friendship, his various correspondence and frequent journeys, the Roman + laurel, and his elaborate compositions in prose and verse, in Latin and + Italian, diverted him from a foreign idiom; and as he advanced in life, + the attainment of the Greek language was the object of his wishes rather + than of his hopes. When he was about fifty years of age, a Byzantine + ambassador, his friend, and a master of both tongues, presented him with a + copy of Homer; and the answer of Petrarch is at one expressive of his + eloquence, gratitude, and regret. After celebrating the generosity of the + donor, and the value of a gift more precious in his estimation than gold + or rubies, he thus proceeds: "Your present of the genuine and original + text of the divine poet, the fountain of all inventions, is worthy of + yourself and of me: you have fulfilled your promise, and satisfied my + desires. Yet your liberality is still imperfect: with Homer you should + have given me yourself; a guide, who could lead me into the fields of + light, and disclose to my wondering eyes the spacious miracles of the + Iliad and Odyssey. But, alas! Homer is dumb, or I am deaf; nor is it in my + power to enjoy the beauty which I possess. I have seated him by the side + of Plato, the prince of poets near the prince of philosophers; and I glory + in the sight of my illustrious guests. Of their immortal writings, + whatever had been translated into the Latin idiom, I had already acquired; + but, if there be no profit, there is some pleasure, in beholding these + venerable Greeks in their proper and national habit. I am delighted with + the aspect of Homer; and as often as I embrace the silent volume, I + exclaim with a sigh, Illustrious bard! with what pleasure should I listen + to thy song, if my sense of hearing were not obstructed and lost by the + death of one friend, and in the much-lamented absence of another. Nor do I + yet despair; and the example of Cato suggests some comfort and hope, since + it was in the last period of age that he attained the knowledge of the + Greek letters." <a href="#linkHnote-92" name="linkHnoteref-92" + id="linkHnoteref-92">92</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-85" id="linkHnote-85"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 85 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-85">return</a>)<br /> [ Of those writers who + professedly treat of the restoration of the Greek learning in Italy, the + two principal are Hodius, Dr. Humphrey Hody, (de Græcis Illustribus, + Linguæ Græcæ Literarumque humaniorum Instauratoribus; Londini, 1742, in + large octavo,) and Tiraboschi, (Istoria della Letteratura Italiana, tom. + v. p. 364—377, tom. vii. p. 112—143.) The Oxford professor is + a laborious scholar, but the librarian of Modena enjoys the superiority of + a modern and national historian.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-86" id="linkHnote-86"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 86 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-86">return</a>)<br /> [ In Calabria quæ olim + magna Græcia dicebatur, coloniis Græcis repleta, remansit quædam linguæ + veteris, cognitio, (Hodius, p. 2.) If it were eradicated by the Romans, it + was revived and perpetuated by the monks of St. Basil, who possessed seven + convents at Rossano alone, (Giannone, Istoria di Napoli, tom. i. p. 520.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-87" id="linkHnote-87"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 87 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-87">return</a>)<br /> [ Ii Barbari (says + Petrarch, the French and Germans) vix, non dicam libros sed nomen Homeri + audiverunt. Perhaps, in that respect, the xiiith century was less happy + than the age of Charlemagne.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-88" id="linkHnote-88"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 88 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-88">return</a>)<br /> [ See the character of + Barlaam, in Boccace de Genealog. Deorum, l. xv. c. 6.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-89" id="linkHnote-89"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 89 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-89">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantacuzen. l. ii. c. + 36.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-90" id="linkHnote-90"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 90 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-90">return</a>)<br /> [ For the connection of + Petrarch and Barlaam, and the two interviews at Avignon in 1339, and at + Naples in 1342, see the excellent Mémoires sur la Vie de Pétrarque, tom. + i. p. 406—410, tom. ii. p. 74—77.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-91" id="linkHnote-91"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 91 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-91">return</a>)<br /> [ The bishopric to which + Barlaam retired, was the old Locri, in the middle ages. Scta. Cyriaca, and + by corruption Hieracium, Gerace, (Dissert. Chorographica Italiæ Medii Ævi, + p. 312.) The dives opum of the Norman times soon lapsed into poverty, + since even the church was poor: yet the town still contains 3000 + inhabitants, (Swinburne, p. 340.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-92" id="linkHnote-92"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 92 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-92">return</a>)<br /> [ I will transcribe a + passage from this epistle of Petrarch, (Famil. ix. 2;) Donasti Homerum non + in alienum sermonem violento alveâ?? derivatum, sed ex ipsis Græci eloquii + scatebris, et qualis divino illi profluxit ingenio.... Sine tuâ voce + Homerus tuus apud me mutus, immo vero ego apud illum surdus sum. Gaudeo + tamen vel adspectû solo, ac sæpe illum amplexus atque suspirans dico, O + magne vir, &c.] + </p> + <p> + The prize which eluded the efforts of Petrarch, was obtained by the + fortune and industry of his friend Boccace, <a href="#linkHnote-93" + name="linkHnoteref-93" id="linkHnoteref-93">93</a> the father of the + Tuscan prose. That popular writer, who derives his reputation from the + Decameron, a hundred novels of pleasantry and love, may aspire to the more + serious praise of restoring in Italy the study of the Greek language. In + the year one thousand three hundred and sixty, a disciple of Barlaam, + whose name was Leo, or Leontius Pilatus, was detained in his way to + Avignon by the advice and hospitality of Boccace, who lodged the stranger + in his house, prevailed on the republic of Florence to allow him an annual + stipend, and devoted his leisure to the first Greek professor, who taught + that language in the Western countries of Europe. The appearance of Leo + might disgust the most eager disciple, he was clothed in the mantle of a + philosopher, or a mendicant; his countenance was hideous; his face was + overshadowed with black hair; his beard long and uncombed; his deportment + rustic; his temper gloomy and inconstant; nor could he grace his discourse + with the ornaments, or even the perspicuity, of Latin elocution. But his + mind was stored with a treasure of Greek learning: history and fable, + philosophy and grammar, were alike at his command; and he read the poems + of Homer in the schools of Florence. It was from his explanation that + Boccace composed <a href="#linkHnote-931" name="linkHnoteref-931" + id="linkHnoteref-931">931</a> and transcribed a literal prose version of + the Iliad and Odyssey, which satisfied the thirst of his friend Petrarch, + and which, perhaps, in the succeeding century, was clandestinely used by + Laurentius Valla, the Latin interpreter. It was from his narratives that + the same Boccace collected the materials for his treatise on the genealogy + of the heathen gods, a work, in that age, of stupendous erudition, and + which he ostentatiously sprinkled with Greek characters and passages, to + excite the wonder and applause of his more ignorant readers. <a + href="#linkHnote-94" name="linkHnoteref-94" id="linkHnoteref-94">94</a> + The first steps of learning are slow and laborious; no more than ten + votaries of Homer could be enumerated in all Italy; and neither Rome, nor + Venice, nor Naples, could add a single name to this studious catalogue. + But their numbers would have multiplied, their progress would have been + accelerated, if the inconstant Leo, at the end of three years, had not + relinquished an honorable and beneficial station. In his passage, Petrarch + entertained him at Padua a short time: he enjoyed the scholar, but was + justly offended with the gloomy and unsocial temper of the man. + Discontented with the world and with himself, Leo depreciated his present + enjoyments, while absent persons and objects were dear to his imagination. + In Italy he was a Thessalian, in Greece a native of Calabria: in the + company of the Latins he disdained their language, religion, and manners: + no sooner was he landed at Constantinople, than he again sighed for the + wealth of Venice and the elegance of Florence. His Italian friends were + deaf to his importunity: he depended on their curiosity and indulgence, + and embarked on a second voyage; but on his entrance into the Adriatic, + the ship was assailed by a tempest, and the unfortunate teacher, who like + Ulysses had fastened himself to the mast, was struck dead by a flash of + lightning. The humane Petrarch dropped a tear on his disaster; but he was + most anxious to learn whether some copy of Euripides or Sophocles might + not be saved from the hands of the mariners. <a href="#linkHnote-95" + name="linkHnoteref-95" id="linkHnoteref-95">95</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-93" id="linkHnote-93"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 93 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-93">return</a>)<br /> [ For the life and + writings of Boccace, who was born in 1313, and died in 1375, Fabricius + (Bibliot. Latin. Medii Ævi, tom. i. p. 248, &c.) and Tiraboschi (tom. + v. p. 83, 439—451) may be consulted. The editions, versions, + imitations of his novels, are innumerable. Yet he was ashamed to + communicate that trifling, and perhaps scandalous, work to Petrarch, his + respectable friend, in whose letters and memoirs he conspicuously + appears.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-931" id="linkHnote-931"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 931 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-931">return</a>)<br /> [ This translation of + Homer was by Pilatus, not by Boccacio. See Hallam, Hist. of Lit. vol. i. + p. 132.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-94" id="linkHnote-94"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 94 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-94">return</a>)<br /> [ Boccace indulges an + honest vanity: Ostentationis causâ Græca carmina adscripsi.... jure utor + meo; meum est hoc decus, mea gloria scilicet inter Etruscos Græcis uti + carminibus. Nonne ego fui qui Leontium Pilatum, &c., (de Genealogia + Deorum, l. xv. c. 7, a work which, though now forgotten, has run through + thirteen or fourteen editions.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-95" id="linkHnote-95"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 95 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-95">return</a>)<br /> [ Leontius, or Leo + Pilatus, is sufficiently made known by Hody, (p. 2—11,) and the abbé + de Sade, (Vie de Pétrarque, tom. iii. p. 625—634, 670—673,) + who has very happily caught the lively and dramatic manner of his + original.] + </p> + <p> + But the faint rudiments of Greek learning, which Petrarch had encouraged + and Boccace had planted, soon withered and expired. The succeeding + generation was content for a while with the improvement of Latin + eloquence; nor was it before the end of the fourteenth century that a new + and perpetual flame was rekindled in Italy. <a href="#linkHnote-96" + name="linkHnoteref-96" id="linkHnoteref-96">96</a> Previous to his own + journey the emperor Manuel despatched his envoys and orators to implore + the compassion of the Western princes. Of these envoys, the most + conspicuous, or the most learned, was Manuel Chrysoloras, <a + href="#linkHnote-97" name="linkHnoteref-97" id="linkHnoteref-97">97</a> of + noble birth, and whose Roman ancestors are supposed to have migrated with + the great Constantine. After visiting the courts of France and England, + where he obtained some contributions and more promises, the envoy was + invited to assume the office of a professor; and Florence had again the + honor of this second invitation. By his knowledge, not only of the Greek, + but of the Latin tongue, Chrysoloras deserved the stipend, and surpassed + the expectation, of the republic. His school was frequented by a crowd of + disciples of every rank and age; and one of these, in a general history, + has described his motives and his success. "At that time," says Leonard + Aretin, <a href="#linkHnote-98" name="linkHnoteref-98" id="linkHnoteref-98">98</a> + "I was a student of the civil law; but my soul was inflamed with the love + of letters; and I bestowed some application on the sciences of logic and + rhetoric. On the arrival of Manuel, I hesitated whether I should desert my + legal studies, or relinquish this golden opportunity; and thus, in the + ardor of youth, I communed with my own mind—Wilt thou be wanting to + thyself and thy fortune? Wilt thou refuse to be introduced to a familiar + converse with Homer, Plato, and Demosthenes; with those poets, + philosophers, and orators, of whom such wonders are related, and who are + celebrated by every age as the great masters of human science? Of + professors and scholars in civil law, a sufficient supply will always be + found in our universities; but a teacher, and such a teacher, of the Greek + language, if he once be suffered to escape, may never afterwards be + retrieved. Convinced by these reasons, I gave myself to Chrysoloras; and + so strong was my passion, that the lessons which I had imbibed in the day + were the constant object of my nightly dreams." <a href="#linkHnote-99" + name="linkHnoteref-99" id="linkHnoteref-99">99</a> At the same time and + place, the Latin classics were explained by John of Ravenna, the domestic + pupil of Petrarch; <a href="#linkHnote-100" name="linkHnoteref-100" + id="linkHnoteref-100">100</a> the Italians, who illustrated their age and + country, were formed in this double school; and Florence became the + fruitful seminary of Greek and Roman erudition. <a href="#linkHnote-101" + name="linkHnoteref-101" id="linkHnoteref-101">101</a> The presence of the + emperor recalled Chrysoloras from the college to the court; but he + afterwards taught at Pavia and Rome with equal industry and applause. The + remainder of his life, about fifteen years, was divided between Italy and + Constantinople, between embassies and lessons. In the noble office of + enlightening a foreign nation, the grammarian was not unmindful of a more + sacred duty to his prince and country; and Emanuel Chrysoloras died at + Constance on a public mission from the emperor to the council. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-96" id="linkHnote-96"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 96 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-96">return</a>)<br /> [ Dr. Hody (p. 54) is + angry with Leonard Aretin, Guarinus, Paulus Jovius, &c., for + affirming, that the Greek letters were restored in Italy <i>post + septingentos annos</i>; as if, says he, they had flourished till the end + of the viith century. These writers most probably reckoned from the last + period of the exarchate; and the presence of the Greek magistrates and + troops at Ravenna and Rome must have preserved, in some degree, the use of + their native tongue.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-97" id="linkHnote-97"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 97 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-97">return</a>)<br /> [ See the article of + Emanuel, or Manuel Chrysoloras, in Hody (p 12—54) and Tiraboschi, + (tom. vii. p. 113—118.) The precise date of his arrival floats + between the years 1390 and 1400, and is only confined by the reign of + Boniface IX.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-98" id="linkHnote-98"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 98 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-98">return</a>)<br /> [ The name of <i>Aretinus</i> + has been assumed by five or six natives of <i>Arezzo</i> in Tuscany, of + whom the most famous and the most worthless lived in the xvith century. + Leonardus Brunus Aretinus, the disciple of Chrysoloras, was a linguist, an + orator, and an historian, the secretary of four successive popes, and the + chancellor of the republic of Florence, where he died A.D. 1444, at the + age of seventy-five, (Fabric. Bibliot. Medii Ævi, tom. i. p. 190 &c. + Tiraboschi, tom. vii. p. 33—38.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-99" id="linkHnote-99"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 99 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-99">return</a>)<br /> [ See the passage in + Aretin. Commentario Rerum suo Tempore in Italia gestarum, apud Hodium, p. + 28—30.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-100" id="linkHnote-100"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 100 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-100">return</a>)<br /> [ In this domestic + discipline, Petrarch, who loved the youth, often complains of the eager + curiosity, restless temper, and proud feelings, which announce the genius + and glory of a riper age, (Mémoires sur Pétrarque, tom. iii. p. 700—709.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-101" id="linkHnote-101"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 101 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-101">return</a>)<br /> [ Hinc Græcæ Latinæque + scholæ exortæ sunt, Guarino Philelpho, Leonardo Aretino, Caroloque, ac + plerisque aliis tanquam ex equo Trojano prodeuntibus, quorum emulatione + multa ingenia deinceps ad laudem excitata sunt, (Platina in Bonifacio IX.) + Another Italian writer adds the names of Paulus Petrus Vergerius, + Omnibonus Vincentius, Poggius, Franciscus Barbarus, &c. But I question + whether a rigid chronology would allow Chrysoloras <i>all</i> these + eminent scholars, (Hodius, p. 25—27, &c.)] + </p> + <p> + After his example, the restoration of the Greek letters in Italy was + prosecuted by a series of emigrants, who were destitute of fortune, and + endowed with learning, or at least with language. From the terror or + oppression of the Turkish arms, the natives of Thessalonica and + Constantinople escaped to a land of freedom, curiosity, and wealth. The + synod introduced into Florence the lights of the Greek church, and the + oracles of the Platonic philosophy; and the fugitives who adhered to the + union, had the double merit of renouncing their country, not only for the + Christian, but for the catholic cause. A patriot, who sacrifices his party + and conscience to the allurements of favor, may be possessed, however, of + the private and social virtues: he no longer hears the reproachful + epithets of slave and apostate; and the consideration which he acquires + among his new associates will restore in his own eyes the dignity of his + character. The prudent conformity of Bessarion was rewarded with the Roman + purple: he fixed his residence in Italy; and the Greek cardinal, the + titular patriarch of Constantinople, was respected as the chief and + protector of his nation: <a href="#linkHnote-102" name="linkHnoteref-102" + id="linkHnoteref-102">102</a> his abilities were exercised in the + legations of Bologna, Venice, Germany, and France; and his election to the + chair of St. Peter floated for a moment on the uncertain breath of a + conclave. <a href="#linkHnote-103" name="linkHnoteref-103" + id="linkHnoteref-103">103</a> His ecclesiastical honors diffused a + splendor and preeminence over his literary merit and service: his palace + was a school; as often as the cardinal visited the Vatican, he was + attended by a learned train of both nations; <a href="#linkHnote-104" + name="linkHnoteref-104" id="linkHnoteref-104">104</a> of men applauded by + themselves and the public; and whose writings, now overspread with dust, + were popular and useful in their own times. I shall not attempt to + enumerate the restorers of Grecian literature in the fifteenth century; + and it may be sufficient to mention with gratitude the names of Theodore + Gaza, of George of Trebizond, of John Argyropulus, and Demetrius + Chalcocondyles, who taught their native language in the schools of + Florence and Rome. Their labors were not inferior to those of Bessarion, + whose purple they revered, and whose fortune was the secret object of + their envy. But the lives of these grammarians were humble and obscure: + they had declined the lucrative paths of the church; their dress and + manners secluded them from the commerce of the world; and since they were + confined to the merit, they might be content with the rewards, of + learning. From this character, Janus Lascaris <a href="#linkHnote-105" + name="linkHnoteref-105" id="linkHnoteref-105">105</a> will deserve an + exception. His eloquence, politeness, and Imperial descent, recommended + him to the French monarch; and in the same cities he was alternately + employed to teach and to negotiate. Duty and interest prompted them to + cultivate the study of the Latin language; and the most successful + attained the faculty of writing and speaking with fluency and elegance in + a foreign idiom. But they ever retained the inveterate vanity of their + country: their praise, or at least their esteem, was reserved for the + national writers, to whom they owed their fame and subsistence; and they + sometimes betrayed their contempt in licentious criticism or satire on + Virgil's poetry, and the oratory of Tully. <a href="#linkHnote-106" + name="linkHnoteref-106" id="linkHnoteref-106">106</a> The superiority of + these masters arose from the familiar use of a living language; and their + first disciples were incapable of discerning how far they had degenerated + from the knowledge, and even the practice of their ancestors. A vicious + pronunciation, <a href="#linkHnote-107" name="linkHnoteref-107" + id="linkHnoteref-107">107</a> which they introduced, was banished from the + schools by the reason of the succeeding age. Of the power of the Greek + accents they were ignorant; and those musical notes, which, from an Attic + tongue, and to an Attic ear, must have been the secret soul of harmony, + were to their eyes, as to our own, no more than minute and unmeaning + marks, in prose superfluous and troublesome in verse. The art of grammar + they truly possessed; the valuable fragments of Apollonius and Herodian + were transfused into their lessons; and their treatises of syntax and + etymology, though devoid of philosophic spirit, are still useful to the + Greek student. In the shipwreck of the Byzantine libraries, each fugitive + seized a fragment of treasure, a copy of some author, who without his + industry might have perished: the transcripts were multiplied by an + assiduous, and sometimes an elegant pen; and the text was corrected and + explained by their own comments, or those of the elder scholiasts. The + sense, though not the spirit, of the Greek classics, was interpreted to + the Latin world: the beauties of style evaporate in a version; but the + judgment of Theodore Gaza selected the more solid works of Aristotle and + Theophrastus, and their natural histories of animals and plants opened a + rich fund of genuine and experimental science. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-102" id="linkHnote-102"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 102 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-102">return</a>)<br /> [ See in Hody the + article of Bessarion, (p. 136—177.) Theodore Gaza, George of + Trebizond, and the rest of the Greeks whom I have named or omitted, are + inserted in their proper chapters of his learned work. See likewise + Tiraboschi, in the 1st and 2d parts of the vith tome.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-103" id="linkHnote-103"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 103 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-103">return</a>)<br /> [ The cardinals knocked + at his door, but his conclavist refused to interrupt the studies of + Bessarion: "Nicholas," said he, "thy respect has cost thee a hat, and me + the tiara." * Note: Roscoe (Life of Lorenzo de Medici, vol. i. p. 75) + considers that Hody has refuted this "idle tale."—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-104" id="linkHnote-104"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 104 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-104">return</a>)<br /> [ Such as George of + Trebizond, Theodore Gaza, Argyropulus, Andronicus of Thessalonica, + Philelphus, Poggius, Blondus, Nicholas Perrot, Valla, Campanus, Platina, + &c. Viri (says Hody, with the pious zeal of a scholar) (nullo ævo + perituri, p. 156.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-105" id="linkHnote-105"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 105 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-105">return</a>)<br /> [ He was born before the + taking of Constantinople, but his honorable life was stretched far into + the xvith century, (A.D. 1535.) Leo X. and Francis I. were his noblest + patrons, under whose auspices he founded the Greek colleges of Rome and + Paris, (Hody, p. 247—275.) He left posterity in France; but the + counts de Vintimille, and their numerous branches, derive the name of + Lascaris from a doubtful marriage in the xiiith century with the daughter + of a Greek emperor (Ducange, Fam. Byzant. p. 224—230.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-106" id="linkHnote-106"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 106 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-106">return</a>)<br /> [ Two of his epigrams + against Virgil, and three against Tully, are preserved and refuted by + Franciscus Floridus, who can find no better names than Græculus ineptus et + impudens, (Hody, p. 274.) In our own times, an English critic has accused + the Æneid of containing multa languida, nugatoria, spiritû et majestate + carminis heroici defecta; many such verses as he, the said Jeremiah + Markland, would have been ashamed of owning, (præfat. ad Statii Sylvas, p. + 21, 22.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-107" id="linkHnote-107"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 107 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-107">return</a>)<br /> [ Emanuel Chrysoloras, + and his colleagues, are accused of ignorance, envy, or avarice, (Sylloge, + &c., tom. ii. p. 235.) The modern Greeks pronounce the b as a V + consonant, and confound three vowels, (h i u,) and several diphthongs. + Such was the vulgar pronunciation which the stern Gardiner maintained by + penal statutes in the university of Cambridge: but the monosyllable bh + represented to an Attic ear the bleating of sheep, and a bellwether is + better evidence than a bishop or a chancellor. The treatises of those + scholars, particularly Erasmus, who asserted a more classical + pronunciation, are collected in the Sylloge of Havercamp, (2 vols. in + octavo, Lugd. Bat. 1736, 1740:) but it is difficult to paint sounds by + words: and in their reference to modern use, they can be understood only + by their respective countrymen. We may observe, that our peculiar + pronunciation of the O, th, is approved by Erasmus, (tom. ii. p. 130.)] + </p> + <p> + Yet the fleeting shadows of metaphysics were pursued with more curiosity + and ardor. After a long oblivion, Plato was revived in Italy by a + venerable Greek, <a href="#linkHnote-108" name="linkHnoteref-108" + id="linkHnoteref-108">108</a> who taught in the house of Cosmo of Medicis. + While the synod of Florence was involved in theological debate, some + beneficial consequences might flow from the study of his elegant + philosophy: his style is the purest standard of the Attic dialect, and his + sublime thoughts are sometimes adapted to familiar conversation, and + sometimes adorned with the richest colors of poetry and eloquence. The + dialogues of Plato are a dramatic picture of the life and death of a sage; + and, as often as he descends from the clouds, his moral system inculcates + the love of truth, of our country, and of mankind. The precept and example + of Socrates recommended a modest doubt and liberal inquiry; and if the + Platonists, with blind devotion, adored the visions and errors of their + divine master, their enthusiasm might correct the dry, dogmatic method of + the Peripatetic school. So equal, yet so opposite, are the merits of Plato + and Aristotle, that they may be balanced in endless controversy; but some + spark of freedom may be produced by the collision of adverse servitude. + The modern Greeks were divided between the two sects: with more fury than + skill they fought under the banner of their leaders; and the field of + battle was removed in their flight from Constantinople to Rome. But this + philosophical debate soon degenerated into an angry and personal quarrel + of grammarians; and Bessarion, though an advocate for Plato, protected the + national honor, by interposing the advice and authority of a mediator. In + the gardens of the Medici, the academical doctrine was enjoyed by the + polite and learned: but their philosophic society was quickly dissolved; + and if the writings of the Attic sage were perused in the closet, the more + powerful Stagyrite continued to reign, the oracle of the church and + school. <a href="#linkHnote-109" name="linkHnoteref-109" + id="linkHnoteref-109">109</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-108" id="linkHnote-108"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 108 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-108">return</a>)<br /> [ George Gemistus + Pletho, a various and voluminous writer, the master of Bessarion, and all + the Platonists of the times. He visited Italy in his old age, and soon + returned to end his days in Peloponnesus. See the curious Diatribe of Leo + Allatius de Georgiis, in Fabricius. (Bibliot. Græc. tom. x. p. 739—756.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-109" id="linkHnote-109"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 109 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-109">return</a>)<br /> [ The state of the + Platonic philosophy in Italy is illustrated by Boivin, (Mém. de l'Acad. + des Inscriptions, tom. ii. p. 715—729,) and Tiraboschi, (tom. vi. P. + i. p. 259—288.)] + </p> + <p> + I have fairly represented the literary merits of the Greeks; yet it must + be confessed, that they were seconded and surpassed by the ardor of the + Latins. Italy was divided into many independent states; and at that time + it was the ambition of princes and republics to vie with each other in the + encouragement and reward of literature. The fame of Nicholas the Fifth <a + href="#linkHnote-110" name="linkHnoteref-110" id="linkHnoteref-110">110</a> + has not been adequate to his merits. From a plebeian origin he raised + himself by his virtue and learning: the character of the man prevailed + over the interest of the pope; and he sharpened those weapons which were + soon pointed against the Roman church. <a href="#linkHnote-111" + name="linkHnoteref-111" id="linkHnoteref-111">111</a> He had been the + friend of the most eminent scholars of the age: he became their patron; + and such was the humility of his manners, that the change was scarcely + discernible either to them or to himself. If he pressed the acceptance of + a liberal gift, it was not as the measure of desert, but as the proof of + benevolence; and when modest merit declined his bounty, "Accept it," would + he say, with a consciousness of his own worth: "ye will not always have a + Nicholas among you." The influence of the holy see pervaded Christendom; + and he exerted that influence in the search, not of benefices, but of + books. From the ruins of the Byzantine libraries, from the darkest + monasteries of Germany and Britain, he collected the dusty manuscripts of + the writers of antiquity; and wherever the original could not be removed, + a faithful copy was transcribed and transmitted for his use. The Vatican, + the old repository for bulls and legends, for superstition and forgery, + was daily replenished with more precious furniture; and such was the + industry of Nicholas, that in a reign of eight years he formed a library + of five thousand volumes. To his munificence the Latin world was indebted + for the versions of Xenophon, Diodorus, Polybius, Thucydides, Herodotus, + and Appian; of Strabo's Geography, of the Iliad, of the most valuable + works of Plato and Aristotle, of Ptolemy and Theophrastus, and of the + fathers of the Greek church. The example of the Roman pontiff was preceded + or imitated by a Florentine merchant, who governed the republic without + arms and without a title. Cosmo of Medicis <a href="#linkHnote-112" + name="linkHnoteref-112" id="linkHnoteref-112">112</a> was the father of a + line of princes, whose name and age are almost synonymous with the + restoration of learning: his credit was ennobled into fame; his riches + were dedicated to the service of mankind; he corresponded at once with + Cairo and London: and a cargo of Indian spices and Greek books was often + imported in the same vessel. The genius and education of his grandson + Lorenzo rendered him not only a patron, but a judge and candidate, in the + literary race. In his palace, distress was entitled to relief, and merit + to reward: his leisure hours were delightfully spent in the Platonic + academy; he encouraged the emulation of Demetrius Chalcocondyles and + Angelo Politian; and his active missionary Janus Lascaris returned from + the East with a treasure of two hundred manuscripts, fourscore of which + were as yet unknown in the libraries of Europe. <a href="#linkHnote-113" + name="linkHnoteref-113" id="linkHnoteref-113">113</a> The rest of Italy + was animated by a similar spirit, and the progress of the nation repaid + the liberality of their princes. The Latins held the exclusive property of + their own literature; and these disciples of Greece were soon capable of + transmitting and improving the lessons which they had imbibed. After a + short succession of foreign teachers, the tide of emigration subsided; but + the language of Constantinople was spread beyond the Alps and the natives + of France, Germany, and England, <a href="#linkHnote-114" + name="linkHnoteref-114" id="linkHnoteref-114">114</a> imparted to their + country the sacred fire which they had kindled in the schools of Florence + and Rome. <a href="#linkHnote-115" name="linkHnoteref-115" + id="linkHnoteref-115">115</a> In the productions of the mind, as in those + of the soil, the gifts of nature are excelled by industry and skill: the + Greek authors, forgotten on the banks of the Ilissus, have been + illustrated on those of the Elbe and the Thames: and Bessarion or Gaza + might have envied the superior science of the Barbarians; the accuracy of + Budæus, the taste of Erasmus, the copiousness of Stephens, the erudition + of Scaliger, the discernment of Reiske, or of Bentley. On the side of the + Latins, the discovery of printing was a casual advantage: but this useful + art has been applied by Aldus, and his innumerable successors, to + perpetuate and multiply the works of antiquity. <a href="#linkHnote-116" + name="linkHnoteref-116" id="linkHnoteref-116">116</a> A single manuscript + imported from Greece is revived in ten thousand copies; and each copy is + fairer than the original. In this form, Homer and Plato would peruse with + more satisfaction their own writings; and their scholiasts must resign the + prize to the labors of our Western editors. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-110" id="linkHnote-110"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 110 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-110">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Life of + Nicholas V. by two contemporary authors, Janottus Manettus, (tom. iii. P. + ii. p. 905—962,) and Vespasian of Florence, (tom. xxv. p. 267—290,) + in the collection of Muratori; and consult Tiraboschi, (tom. vi. P. i. p. + 46—52, 109,) and Hody in the articles of Theodore Gaza, George of + Trebizond, &c.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-111" id="linkHnote-111"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 111 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-111">return</a>)<br /> [ Lord Bolingbroke + observes, with truth and spirit, that the popes in this instance, were + worse politicians than the muftis, and that the charm which had bound + mankind for so many ages was broken by the magicians themselves, (Letters + on the Study of History, l. vi. p. 165, 166, octavo edition, 1779.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-112" id="linkHnote-112"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 112 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-112">return</a>)<br /> [ See the literary + history of Cosmo and Lorenzo of Medicis, in Tiraboschi, (tom. vi. P. i. l. + i. c. 2,) who bestows a due measure of praise on Alphonso of Arragon, king + of Naples, the dukes of Milan, Ferrara Urbino, &c. The republic of + Venice has deserved the least from the gratitude of scholars.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-113" id="linkHnote-113"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 113 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-113">return</a>)<br /> [ Tiraboschi, (tom. vi. + P. i. p. 104,) from the preface of Janus Lascaris to the Greek Anthology, + printed at Florence, 1494. Latebant (says Aldus in his preface to the + Greek orators, apud Hodium, p. 249) in Atho Thraciæ monte. Eas + Lascaris.... in Italiam reportavit. Miserat enim ipsum Laurentius ille + Medices in Græciam ad inquirendos simul, et quantovis emendos pretio bonos + libros. It is remarkable enough, that the research was facilitated by + Sultan Bajazet II.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-114" id="linkHnote-114"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 114 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-114">return</a>)<br /> [ The Greek language was + introduced into the university of Oxford in the last years of the xvth + century, by Grocyn, Linacer, and Latimer, who had all studied at Florence + under Demetrius Chalcocondyles. See Dr. Knight's curious Life of Erasmus. + Although a stout academical patriot, he is forced to acknowledge that + Erasmus learned Greek at Oxford, and taught it at Cambridge.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-115" id="linkHnote-115"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 115 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-115">return</a>)<br /> [ The jealous Italians + were desirous of keeping a monopoly of Greek learning. When Aldus was + about to publish the Greek scholiasts on Sophocles and Euripides, Cave, + (said they,) cave hoc facias, ne <i>Barbari</i> istis adjuti domi maneant, + et pauciores in Italiam ventitent, (Dr. Knight, in his Life of Erasmus, p. + 365, from Beatus Rhemanus.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-116" id="linkHnote-116"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 116 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-116">return</a>)<br /> [ The press of Aldus + Manutius, a Roman, was established at Venice about the year 1494: he + printed above sixty considerable works of Greek literature, almost all for + the first time; several containing different treatises and authors, and of + several authors, two, three, or four editions, (Fabric. Bibliot. Græc. + tom. xiii. p. 605, &c.) Yet his glory must not tempt us to forget, + that the first Greek book, the Grammar of Constantine Lascaris, was + printed at Milan in 1476; and that the Florence Homer of 1488 displays all + the luxury of the typographical art. See the Annales Typographical of + Mattaire, and the Bibliographie Instructive of De Bure, a knowing + bookseller of Paris.] + </p> + <p> + Before the revival of classic literature, the Barbarians in Europe were + immersed in ignorance; and their vulgar tongues were marked with the + rudeness and poverty of their manners. The students of the more perfect + idioms of Rome and Greece were introduced to a new world of light and + science; to the society of the free and polished nations of antiquity; and + to a familiar converse with those immortal men who spoke the sublime + language of eloquence and reason. Such an intercourse must tend to refine + the taste, and to elevate the genius, of the moderns; and yet, from the + first experiments, it might appear that the study of the ancients had + given fetters, rather than wings, to the human mind. However laudable, the + spirit of imitation is of a servile cast; and the first disciples of the + Greeks and Romans were a colony of strangers in the midst of their age and + country. The minute and laborious diligence which explored the antiquities + of remote times might have improved or adorned the present state of + society, the critic and metaphysician were the slaves of Aristotle; the + poets, historians, and orators, were proud to repeat the thoughts and + words of the Augustan age: the works of nature were observed with the eyes + of Pliny and Theophrastus; and some Pagan votaries professed a secret + devotion to the gods of Homer and Plato. <a href="#linkHnote-117" + name="linkHnoteref-117" id="linkHnoteref-117">117</a> The Italians were + oppressed by the strength and number of their ancient auxiliaries: the + century after the deaths of Petrarch and Boccace was filled with a crowd + of Latin imitators, who decently repose on our shelves; but in that æra of + learning it will not be easy to discern a real discovery of science, a + work of invention or eloquence, in the popular language of the country. <a + href="#linkHnote-118" name="linkHnoteref-118" id="linkHnoteref-118">118</a> + But as soon as it had been deeply saturated with the celestial dew, the + soil was quickened into vegetation and life; the modern idioms were + refined; the classics of Athens and Rome inspired a pure taste and a + generous emulation; and in Italy, as afterwards in France and England, the + pleasing reign of poetry and fiction was succeeded by the light of + speculative and experimental philosophy. Genius may anticipate the season + of maturity; but in the education of a people, as in that of an + individual, memory must be exercised, before the powers of reason and + fancy can be expanded: nor may the artist hope to equal or surpass, till + he has learned to imitate, the works of his predecessors. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-117" id="linkHnote-117"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 117 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-117">return</a>)<br /> [ I will select three + singular examples of this classic enthusiasm. I. At the synod of Florence, + Gemistus Pletho said, in familiar conversation to George of Trebizond, + that in a short time mankind would unanimously renounce the Gospel and the + Koran, for a religion similar to that of the Gentiles, (Leo Allatius, apud + Fabricium, tom. x. p. 751.) 2. Paul II. persecuted the Roman academy, + which had been founded by Pomponius Lætus; and the principal members were + accused of heresy, impiety, and <i>paganism</i>, (Tiraboschi, tom. vi. P. + i. p. 81, 82.) 3. In the next century, some scholars and poets in France + celebrated the success of Jodelle's tragedy of Cleopatra, by a festival of + Bacchus, and, as it is said, by the sacrifice of a goat, (Bayle, + Dictionnaire, Jodelle. Fontenelle, tom. iii. p. 56—61.) Yet the + spirit of bigotry might often discern a serious impiety in the sportive + play of fancy and learning.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkHnote-118" id="linkHnote-118"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 118 (<a href="#linkHnoteref-118">return</a>)<br /> [ The survivor Boccace + died in the year 1375; and we cannot place before 1480 the composition of + the Morgante Maggiore of Pulci and the Orlando Innamorato of Boyardo, + (Tiraboschi, tom. vi. P. ii. p. 174—177.)] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> ============== <a name="linkI2HCH0001" id="linkI2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + Chapter LXVII: Schism Of The Greeks And Latins.—Part I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Schism Of The Greeks And Latins.—Reign And Character Of + Amurath The Second.—Crusade Of Ladislaus, King Of Hungary.— + His Defeat And Death.—John Huniades.—Scanderbeg.— + Constantine Palæologus, Last Emperor Of The East. +</pre> + <p> + The respective merits of Rome and Constantinople are compared and + celebrated by an eloquent Greek, the father of the Italian schools. <a + href="#linkInote-1" name="linkInoteref-1" id="linkInoteref-1">1</a> The + view of the ancient capital, the seat of his ancestors, surpassed the most + sanguine expectations of Emanuel Chrysoloras; and he no longer blamed the + exclamation of an old sophist, that Rome was the habitation, not of men, + but of gods. Those gods, and those men, had long since vanished; but to + the eye of liberal enthusiasm, the majesty of ruin restored the image of + her ancient prosperity. The monuments of the consuls and Cæsars, of the + martyrs and apostles, engaged on all sides the curiosity of the + philosopher and the Christian; and he confessed that in every age the arms + and the religion of Rome were destined to reign over the earth. While + Chrysoloras admired the venerable beauties of the mother, he was not + forgetful of his native country, her fairest daughter, her Imperial + colony; and the Byzantine patriot expatiates with zeal and truth on the + eternal advantages of nature, and the more transitory glories of art and + dominion, which adorned, or had adorned, the city of Constantine. Yet the + perfection of the copy still redounds (as he modestly observes) to the + honor of the original, and parents are delighted to be renewed, and even + excelled, by the superior merit of their children. "Constantinople," says + the orator, "is situate on a commanding point, between Europe and Asia, + between the Archipelago and the Euxine. By her interposition, the two + seas, and the two continents, are united for the common benefit of + nations; and the gates of commerce may be shut or opened at her command. + The harbor, encompassed on all sides by the sea, and the continent, is the + most secure and capacious in the world. The walls and gates of + Constantinople may be compared with those of Babylon: the towers many; + each tower is a solid and lofty structure; and the second wall, the outer + fortification, would be sufficient for the defence and dignity of an + ordinary capital. A broad and rapid stream may be introduced into the + ditches and the artificial island may be encompassed, like Athens, <a + href="#linkInote-2" name="linkInoteref-2" id="linkInoteref-2">2</a> by + land or water." Two strong and natural causes are alleged for the + perfection of the model of new Rome. The royal founder reigned over the + most illustrious nations of the globe; and in the accomplishment of his + designs, the power of the Romans was combined with the art and science of + the Greeks. Other cities have been reared to maturity by accident and + time: their beauties are mingled with disorder and deformity; and the + inhabitants, unwilling to remove from their natal spot, are incapable of + correcting the errors of their ancestors, and the original vices of + situation or climate. But the free idea of Constantinople was formed and + executed by a single mind; and the primitive model was improved by the + obedient zeal of the subjects and successors of the first monarch. The + adjacent isles were stored with an inexhaustible supply of marble; but the + various materials were transported from the most remote shores of Europe + and Asia; and the public and private buildings, the palaces, churches, + aqueducts, cisterns, porticos, columns, baths, and hippodromes, were + adapted to the greatness of the capital of the East. The superfluity of + wealth was spread along the shores of Europe and Asia; and the Byzantine + territory, as far as the Euxine, the Hellespont, and the long wall, might + be considered as a populous suburb and a perpetual garden. In this + flattering picture, the past and the present, the times of prosperity and + decay, are artfully confounded; but a sigh and a confession escape, from + the orator, that his wretched country was the shadow and sepulchre of its + former self. The works of ancient sculpture had been defaced by Christian + zeal or Barbaric violence; the fairest structures were demolished; and the + marbles of Paros or Numidia were burnt for lime, or applied to the meanest + uses. Of many a statue, the place was marked by an empty pedestal; of many + a column, the size was determined by a broken capital; the tombs of the + emperors were scattered on the ground; the stroke of time was accelerated + by storms and earthquakes; and the vacant space was adorned, by vulgar + tradition, with fabulous monuments of gold and silver. From these wonders, + which lived only in memory or belief, he distinguishes, however, the + porphyry pillar, the column and colossus of Justinian, <a + href="#linkInote-3" name="linkInoteref-3" id="linkInoteref-3">3</a> and + the church, more especially the dome, of St. Sophia; the best conclusion, + since it could not be described according to its merits, and after it no + other object could deserve to be mentioned. But he forgets that, a century + before, the trembling fabrics of the colossus and the church had been + saved and supported by the timely care of Andronicus the Elder. Thirty + years after the emperor had fortified St. Sophia with two new buttresses + or pyramids, the eastern hemisphere suddenly gave way: and the images, the + altars, and the sanctuary, were crushed by the falling ruin. The mischief + indeed was speedily repaired; the rubbish was cleared by the incessant + labor of every rank and age; and the poor remains of riches and industry + were consecrated by the Greeks to the most stately and venerable temple of + the East. <a href="#linkInote-4" name="linkInoteref-4" id="linkInoteref-4">4</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-1" id="linkInote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkInoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ The epistle of Emanuel + Chrysoloras to the emperor John Palæologus will not offend the eye or ear + of a classical student, (ad calcem Codini de Antiquitatibus C. P. p. 107—126.) + The superscription suggests a chronological remark, that John Palæologus + II. was associated in the empire before the year 1414, the date of + Chrysoloras's death. A still earlier date, at least 1408, is deduced from + the age of his youngest sons, Demetrius and Thomas, who were both <i>Porphyrogeniti</i> + (Ducange, Fam. Byzant. p. 244, 247.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-2" id="linkInote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkInoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ Somebody observed that the + city of Athens might be circumnavigated, (tiV eipen tin polin tvn Aqhnaiwn + dunasqai kai paraplein kai periplein.) But what may be true in a + rhetorical sense of Constantinople, cannot be applied to the situation of + Athens, five miles from the sea, and not intersected or surrounded by any + navigable streams.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-3" id="linkInote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkInoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ Nicephorus Gregoras has + described the Colossus of Justinian, (l. vii. 12:) but his measures are + false and inconsistent. The editor Boivin consulted his friend Girardon; + and the sculptor gave him the true proportions of an equestrian statue. + That of Justinian was still visible to Peter Gyllius, not on the column, + but in the outward court of the seraglio; and he was at Constantinople + when it was melted down, and cast into a brass cannon, (de Topograph. C. + P. l. ii. c. 17.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-4" id="linkInote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkInoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ See the decay and repairs + of St. Sophia, in Nicephorus Gregoras (l. vii. 12, l. xv. 2.) The building + was propped by Andronicus in 1317, the eastern hemisphere fell in 1345. + The Greeks, in their pompous rhetoric, exalt the beauty and holiness of + the church, an earthly heaven the abode of angels, and of God himself, + &c.] + </p> + <p> + The last hope of the falling city and empire was placed in the harmony of + the mother and daughter, in the maternal tenderness of Rome, and the + filial obedience of Constantinople. In the synod of Florence, the Greeks + and Latins had embraced, and subscribed, and promised; but these signs of + friendship were perfidious or fruitless; <a href="#linkInote-5" + name="linkInoteref-5" id="linkInoteref-5">5</a> and the baseless fabric of + the union vanished like a dream. <a href="#linkInote-6" + name="linkInoteref-6" id="linkInoteref-6">6</a> The emperor and his + prelates returned home in the Venetian galleys; but as they touched at the + Morea and the Isles of Corfu and Lesbos, the subjects of the Latins + complained that the pretended union would be an instrument of oppression. + No sooner did they land on the Byzantine shore, than they were saluted, or + rather assailed, with a general murmur of zeal and discontent. During + their absence, above two years, the capital had been deprived of its civil + and ecclesiastical rulers; fanaticism fermented in anarchy; the most + furious monks reigned over the conscience of women and bigots; and the + hatred of the Latin name was the first principle of nature and religion. + Before his departure for Italy, the emperor had flattered the city with + the assurance of a prompt relief and a powerful succor; and the clergy, + confident in their orthodoxy and science, had promised themselves and + their flocks an easy victory over the blind shepherds of the West. The + double disappointment exasperated the Greeks; the conscience of the + subscribing prelates was awakened; the hour of temptation was past; and + they had more to dread from the public resentment, than they could hope + from the favor of the emperor or the pope. Instead of justifying their + conduct, they deplored their weakness, professed their contrition, and + cast themselves on the mercy of God and of their brethren. To the + reproachful question, what had been the event or the use of their Italian + synod? they answered with sighs and tears, "Alas! we have made a new + faith; we have exchanged piety for impiety; we have betrayed the + immaculate sacrifice; and we are become <i>Azymites</i>." (The Azymites + were those who celebrated the communion with unleavened bread; and I must + retract or qualify the praise which I have bestowed on the growing + philosophy of the times.) "Alas! we have been seduced by distress, by + fraud, and by the hopes and fears of a transitory life. The hand that has + signed the union should be cut off; and the tongue that has pronounced the + Latin creed deserves to be torn from the root." The best proof of their + repentance was an increase of zeal for the most trivial rites and the most + incomprehensible doctrines; and an absolute separation from all, without + excepting their prince, who preserved some regard for honor and + consistency. After the decease of the patriarch Joseph, the archbishops of + Heraclea and Trebizond had courage to refuse the vacant office; and + Cardinal Bessarion preferred the warm and comfortable shelter of the + Vatican. The choice of the emperor and his clergy was confined to + Metrophanes of Cyzicus: he was consecrated in St. Sophia, but the temple + was vacant. The cross-bearers abdicated their service; the infection + spread from the city to the villages; and Metrophanes discharged, without + effect, some ecclesiastical thunders against a nation of schismatics. The + eyes of the Greeks were directed to Mark of Ephesus, the champion of his + country; and the sufferings of the holy confessor were repaid with a + tribute of admiration and applause. His example and writings propagated + the flame of religious discord; age and infirmity soon removed him from + the world; but the gospel of Mark was not a law of forgiveness; and he + requested with his dying breath, that none of the adherents of Rome might + attend his obsequies or pray for his soul. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-5" id="linkInote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkInoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ The genuine and original + narrative of Syropulus (p. 312—351) opens the schism from the first + <i>office</i> of the Greeks at Venice to the general opposition at + Constantinople, of the clergy and people.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-6" id="linkInote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkInoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ On the schism of + Constantinople, see Phranza, (l. ii. c. 17,) Laonicus Chalcondyles, (l. + vi. p. 155, 156,) and Ducas, (c. 31;) the last of whom writes with truth + and freedom. Among the moderns we may distinguish the continuator of + Fleury, (tom. xxii. p. 338, &c., 401, 420, &c.,) and Spondanus, + (A.D. 1440—50.) The sense of the latter is drowned in prejudice and + passion, as soon as Rome and religion are concerned.] + </p> + <p> + The schism was not confined to the narrow limits of the Byzantine empire. + Secure under the Mamaluke sceptre, the three patriarchs of Alexandria, + Antioch, and Jerusalem, assembled a numerous synod; disowned their + representatives at Ferrara and Florence; condemned the creed and council + of the Latins; and threatened the emperor of Constantinople with the + censures of the Eastern church. Of the sectaries of the Greek communion, + the Russians were the most powerful, ignorant, and superstitious. Their + primate, the cardinal Isidore, hastened from Florence to Moscow, <a + href="#linkInote-7" name="linkInoteref-7" id="linkInoteref-7">7</a> to + reduce the independent nation under the Roman yoke. But the Russian + bishops had been educated at Mount Athos; and the prince and people + embraced the theology of their priests. They were scandalized by the + title, the pomp, the Latin cross of the legate, the friend of those + impious men who shaved their beards, and performed the divine office with + gloves on their hands and rings on their fingers: Isidore was condemned by + a synod; his person was imprisoned in a monastery; and it was with extreme + difficulty that the cardinal could escape from the hands of a fierce and + fanatic people. <a href="#linkInote-8" name="linkInoteref-8" + id="linkInoteref-8">8</a> The Russians refused a passage to the + missionaries of Rome who aspired to convert the Pagans beyond the Tanais; + <a href="#linkInote-9" name="linkInoteref-9" id="linkInoteref-9">9</a> and + their refusal was justified by the maxim, that the guilt of idolatry is + less damnable than that of schism. The errors of the Bohemians were + excused by their abhorrence for the pope; and a deputation of the Greek + clergy solicited the friendship of those sanguinary enthusiasts. <a + href="#linkInote-10" name="linkInoteref-10" id="linkInoteref-10">10</a> + While Eugenius triumphed in the union and orthodoxy of the Greeks, his + party was contracted to the walls, or rather to the palace of + Constantinople. The zeal of Palæologus had been excited by interest; it + was soon cooled by opposition: an attempt to violate the national belief + might endanger his life and crown; not could the pious rebels be destitute + of foreign and domestic aid. The sword of his brother Demetrius, who in + Italy had maintained a prudent and popular silence, was half unsheathed in + the cause of religion; and Amurath, the Turkish sultan, was displeased and + alarmed by the seeming friendship of the Greeks and Latins. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-7" id="linkInote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkInoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ Isidore was metropolitan + of Kiow, but the Greeks subject to Poland have removed that see from the + ruins of Kiow to Lemberg, or Leopold, (Herbestein, in Ramusio, tom. ii. p. + 127.) On the other hand, the Russians transferred their spiritual + obedience to the archbishop, who became, in 1588, the patriarch, of + Moscow, (Levesque Hist. de Russie, tom. iii. p. 188, 190, from a Greek MS. + at Turin, Iter et labores Archiepiscopi Arsenii.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-8" id="linkInote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkInoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ The curious narrative of + Levesque (Hist. de Russie, tom. ii. p. 242—247) is extracted from + the patriarchal archives. The scenes of Ferrara and Florence are described + by ignorance and passion; but the Russians are credible in the account of + their own prejudices.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-9" id="linkInote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkInoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ The Shamanism, the ancient + religion of the Samanæans and Gymnosophists, has been driven by the more + popular Bramins from India into the northern deserts: the naked + philosophers were compelled to wrap themselves in fur; but they insensibly + sunk into wizards and physicians. The Mordvans and Tcheremisses in the + European Russia adhere to this religion, which is formed on the earthly + model of one king or God, his ministers or angels, and the rebellious + spirits who oppose his government. As these tribes of the Volga have no + images, they might more justly retort on the Latin missionaries the name + of idolaters, (Levesque, Hist. des Peuples soumis à la Domination des + Russes, tom. i. p. 194—237, 423—460.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-10" id="linkInote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkInoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ Spondanus, Annal. + Eccles. tom ii. A.D. 1451, No. 13. The epistle of the Greeks with a Latin + version, is extant in the college library at Prague.] + </p> + <p> + "Sultan Murad, or Amurath, lived forty-nine, and reigned thirty years, six + months, and eight days. He was a just and valiant prince, of a great soul, + patient of labors, learned, merciful, religious, charitable; a lover and + encourager of the studious, and of all who excelled in any art or science; + a good emperor and a great general. No man obtained more or greater + victories than Amurath; Belgrade alone withstood his attacks. <a + href="#linkInote-101" name="linkInoteref-101" id="linkInoteref-101">101</a> + Under his reign, the soldier was ever victorious, the citizen rich and + secure. If he subdued any country, his first care was to build mosques and + caravansaras, hospitals, and colleges. Every year he gave a thousand + pieces of gold to the sons of the Prophet; and sent two thousand five + hundred to the religious persons of Mecca, Medina, and Jerusalem." <a + href="#linkInote-11" name="linkInoteref-11" id="linkInoteref-11">11</a> + This portrait is transcribed from the historian of the Othman empire: but + the applause of a servile and superstitious people has been lavished on + the worst of tyrants; and the virtues of a sultan are often the vices most + useful to himself, or most agreeable to his subjects. A nation ignorant of + the equal benefits of liberty and law, must be awed by the flashes of + arbitrary power: the cruelty of a despot will assume the character of + justice; his profusion, of liberality; his obstinacy, of firmness. If the + most reasonable excuse be rejected, few acts of obedience will be found + impossible; and guilt must tremble, where innocence cannot always be + secure. The tranquillity of the people, and the discipline of the troops, + were best maintained by perpetual action in the field; war was the trade + of the Janizaries; and those who survived the peril, and divided the + spoil, applauded the generous ambition of their sovereign. To propagate + the true religion, was the duty of a faithful Mussulman: the unbelievers + were <i>his</i> enemies, and those of the Prophet; and, in the hands of + the Turks, the cimeter was the only instrument of conversion. Under these + circumstances, however, the justice and moderation of Amurath are attested + by his conduct, and acknowledged by the Christians themselves; who + consider a prosperous reign and a peaceful death as the reward of his + singular merits. In the vigor of his age and military power, he seldom + engaged in war till he was justified by a previous and adequate + provocation: the victorious sultan was disarmed by submission; and in the + observance of treaties, his word was inviolate and sacred. <a + href="#linkInote-12" name="linkInoteref-12" id="linkInoteref-12">12</a> + The Hungarians were commonly the aggressors; he was provoked by the revolt + of Scanderbeg; and the perfidious Caramanian was twice vanquished, and + twice pardoned, by the Ottoman monarch. Before he invaded the Morea, + Thebes had been surprised by the despot: in the conquest of Thessalonica, + the grandson of Bajazet might dispute the recent purchase of the + Venetians; and after the first siege of Constantinople, the sultan was + never tempted, by the distress, the absence, or the injuries of + Palæologus, to extinguish the dying light of the Byzantine empire. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-101" id="linkInote-101"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 101 (<a href="#linkInoteref-101">return</a>)<br /> [ See the siege and + massacre at Thessalonica. Von Hammer vol. i p. 433.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-11" id="linkInote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkInoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ See Cantemir, History of + the Othman Empire, p. 94. Murad, or Morad, may be more correct: but I have + preferred the popular name to that obscure diligence which is rarely + successful in translating an Oriental, into the Roman, alphabet.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-12" id="linkInote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkInoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ See Chalcondyles, (l. + vii. p. 186, 198,) Ducas, (c. 33,) and Marinus Barletius, (in Vit. + Scanderbeg, p. 145, 146.) In his good faith towards the garrison of + Sfetigrade, he was a lesson and example to his son Mahomet.] + </p> + <p> + But the most striking feature in the life and character of Amurath is the + double abdication of the Turkish throne; and, were not his motives debased + by an alloy of superstition, we must praise the royal philosopher, <a + href="#linkInote-13" name="linkInoteref-13" id="linkInoteref-13">13</a> + who at the age of forty could discern the vanity of human greatness. + Resigning the sceptre to his son, he retired to the pleasant residence of + Magnesia; but he retired to the society of saints and hermits. It was not + till the fourth century of the Hegira, that the religion of Mahomet had + been corrupted by an institution so adverse to his genius; but in the age + of the crusades, the various orders of Dervises were multiplied by the + example of the Christian, and even the Latin, monks. <a + href="#linkInote-14" name="linkInoteref-14" id="linkInoteref-14">14</a> + The lord of nations submitted to fast, and pray, and turn round <a + href="#linkInote-141" name="linkInoteref-141" id="linkInoteref-141">141</a> + in endless rotation with the fanatics, who mistook the giddiness of the + head for the illumination of the spirit. <a href="#linkInote-15" + name="linkInoteref-15" id="linkInoteref-15">15</a> But he was soon + awakened from his dreams of enthusiasm by the Hungarian invasion; and his + obedient son was the foremost to urge the public danger and the wishes of + the people. Under the banner of their veteran leader, the Janizaries + fought and conquered but he withdrew from the field of Varna, again to + pray, to fast, and to turn round with his Magnesian brethren. These pious + occupations were again interrupted by the danger of the state. A + victorious army disdained the inexperience of their youthful ruler: the + city of Adrianople was abandoned to rapine and slaughter; and the + unanimous divan implored his presence to appease the tumult, and prevent + the rebellion, of the Janizaries. At the well-known voice of their master, + they trembled and obeyed; and the reluctant sultan was compelled to + support his splendid servitude, till at the end of four years, he was + relieved by the angel of death. Age or disease, misfortune or caprice, + have tempted several princes to descend from the throne; and they have had + leisure to repent of their irretrievable step. But Amurath alone, in the + full liberty of choice, after the trial of empire and solitude, has <i>repeated</i> + his preference of a private life. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-13" id="linkInote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkInoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ Voltaire (Essai sur + l'Histoire Générale, c. 89, p. 283, 284) admires <i>le Philosophe Turc:</i> + would he have bestowed the same praise on a Christian prince for retiring + to a monastery? In his way, Voltaire was a bigot, an intolerant bigot.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-14" id="linkInote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkInoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ See the articles <i>Dervische</i>, + <i>Fakir</i>, <i>Nasser</i>, <i>Rohbaniat</i>, in D'Herbelot's + Bibliothèque Orientale. Yet the subject is superficially treated from the + Persian and Arabian writers. It is among the Turks that these orders have + principally flourished.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-141" id="linkInote-141"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 141 (<a href="#linkInoteref-141">return</a>)<br /> [ Gibbon has fallen into + a remarkable error. The unmonastic retreat of Amurath was that of an + epicurean rather than of a dervis; more like that of Sardanapalus than of + Charles the Fifth. Profane, not divine, love was its chief occupation: the + only dance, that described by Horace as belonging to the country, motus + doceri gaudet Ionicos. See Von Hammer Inote, p. 652.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-15" id="linkInote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkInoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ Ricaut (in the Present + State of the Ottoman Empire, p. 242—268) affords much information, + which he drew from his personal conversation with the heads of the + dervises, most of whom ascribed their origin to the time of Orchan. He + does not mention the <i>Zichid</i> of Chalcondyles, (l. vii. p. 286,) + among whom Amurath retired: the <i>Seids</i> of that author are the + descendants of Mahomet.] + </p> + <p> + After the departure of his Greek brethren, Eugenius had not been unmindful + of their temporal interest; and his tender regard for the Byzantine empire + was animated by a just apprehension of the Turks, who approached, and + might soon invade, the borders of Italy. But the spirit of the crusades + had expired; and the coldness of the Franks was not less unreasonable than + their headlong passion. In the eleventh century, a fanatic monk could + precipitate Europe on Asia for the recovery of the holy sepulchre; but in + the fifteenth, the most pressing motives of religion and policy were + insufficient to unite the Latins in the defence of Christendom. Germany + was an inexhaustible storehouse of men and arms: <a href="#linkInote-16" + name="linkInoteref-16" id="linkInoteref-16">16</a> but that complex and + languid body required the impulse of a vigorous hand; and Frederic the + Third was alike impotent in his personal character and his Imperial + dignity. A long war had impaired the strength, without satiating the + animosity, of France and England: <a href="#linkInote-17" + name="linkInoteref-17" id="linkInoteref-17">17</a> but Philip duke of + Burgundy was a vain and magnificent prince; and he enjoyed, without danger + or expense, the adventurous piety of his subjects, who sailed, in a + gallant fleet, from the coast of Flanders to the Hellespont. The maritime + republics of Venice and Genoa were less remote from the scene of action; + and their hostile fleets were associated under the standard of St. Peter. + The kingdoms of Hungary and Poland, which covered as it were the interior + pale of the Latin church, were the most nearly concerned to oppose the + progress of the Turks. Arms were the patrimony of the Scythians and + Sarmatians; and these nations might appear equal to the contest, could + they point, against the common foe, those swords that were so wantonly + drawn in bloody and domestic quarrels. But the same spirit was adverse to + concord and obedience: a poor country and a limited monarch are incapable + of maintaining a standing force; and the loose bodies of Polish and + Hungarian horse were not armed with the sentiments and weapons which, on + some occasions, have given irresistible weight to the French chivalry. + Yet, on this side, the designs of the Roman pontiff, and the eloquence of + Cardinal Julian, his legate, were promoted by the circumstances of the + times: <a href="#linkInote-18" name="linkInoteref-18" id="linkInoteref-18">18</a> + by the union of the two crowns on the head of Ladislaus, <a + href="#linkInote-19" name="linkInoteref-19" id="linkInoteref-19">19</a> a + young and ambitious soldier; by the valor of a hero, whose name, the name + of John Huniades, was already popular among the Christians, and formidable + to the Turks. An endless treasure of pardons and indulgences was scattered + by the legate; many private warriors of France and Germany enlisted under + the holy banner; and the crusade derived some strength, or at least some + reputation, from the new allies both of Europe and Asia. A fugitive despot + of Servia exaggerated the distress and ardor of the Christians beyond the + Danube, who would unanimously rise to vindicate their religion and + liberty. The Greek emperor, <a href="#linkInote-20" name="linkInoteref-20" + id="linkInoteref-20">20</a> with a spirit unknown to his fathers, engaged + to guard the Bosphorus, and to sally from Constantinople at the head of + his national and mercenary troops. The sultan of Caramania <a + href="#linkInote-21" name="linkInoteref-21" id="linkInoteref-21">21</a> + announced the retreat of Amurath, and a powerful diversion in the heart of + Anatolia; and if the fleets of the West could occupy at the same moment + the Straits of the Hellespont, the Ottoman monarchy would be dissevered + and destroyed. Heaven and earth must rejoice in the perdition of the + miscreants; and the legate, with prudent ambiguity, instilled the opinion + of the invisible, perhaps the visible, aid of the Son of God, and his + divine mother. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-16" id="linkInote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkInoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ In the year 1431, + Germany raised 40,000 horse, men-at-arms, against the Hussites of Bohemia, + (Lenfant, Hist. du Concile de Basle, tom. i. p. 318.) At the siege of + Nuys, on the Rhine, in 1474, the princes, prelates, and cities, sent their + respective quotas; and the bishop of Munster (qui n'est pas des plus + grands) furnished 1400 horse, 6000 foot, all in green, with 1200 wagons. + The united armies of the king of England and the duke of Burgundy scarcely + equalled one third of this German host, (Mémoires de Philippe de Comines, + l. iv. c. 2.) At present, six or seven hundred thousand men are maintained + in constant pay and admirable discipline by the powers of Germany.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-17" id="linkInote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkInoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ It was not till the year + 1444, that France and England could agree on a truce of some months. (See + Rymer's Fdera, and the chronicles of both nations.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-18" id="linkInote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkInoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ In the Hungarian + crusade, Spondanus (Annal. Ecclés. A.D. 1443, 1444) has been my leading + guide. He has diligently read, and critically compared, the Greek and + Turkish materials, the historians of Hungary, Poland, and the West. His + narrative is perspicuous and where he can be free from a religious bias, + the judgment of Spondanus is not contemptible.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-19" id="linkInote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkInoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ I have curtailed the + harsh letter (Wladislaus) which most writers affix to his name, either in + compliance with the Polish pronunciation, or to distinguish him from his + rival the infant Ladislaus of Austria. Their competition for the crown of + Hungary is described by Callimachus, (l. i. ii. p. 447—486,) + Bonfinius, (Decad. iii. l. iv.,) Spondanus, and Lenfant.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-20" id="linkInote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkInoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ The Greek historians, + Phranza, Chalcondyles, and Ducas, do not ascribe to their prince a very + active part in this crusade, which he seems to have promoted by his + wishes, and injured by his fears.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-21" id="linkInote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkInoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantemir (p. 88) + ascribes to his policy the original plan, and transcribes his animating + epistle to the king of Hungary. But the Mahometan powers are seldom it + formed of the state of Christendom and the situation and correspondence of + the knights of Rhodes must connect them with the sultan of Caramania.] + </p> + <p> + Of the Polish and Hungarian diets, a religious war was the unanimous cry; + and Ladislaus, after passing the Danube, led an army of his confederate + subjects as far as Sophia, the capital of the Bulgarian kingdom. In this + expedition they obtained two signal victories, which were justly ascribed + to the valor and conduct of Huniades. In the first, with a vanguard of ten + thousand men, he surprised the Turkish camp; in the second, he vanquished + and made prisoner the most renowned of their generals, who possessed the + double advantage of ground and numbers. The approach of winter, and the + natural and artificial obstacles of Mount Hæmus, arrested the progress of + the hero, who measured a narrow interval of six days' march from the foot + of the mountains to the hostile towers of Adrianople, and the friendly + capital of the Greek empire. The retreat was undisturbed; and the entrance + into Buda was at once a military and religious triumph. An ecclesiastical + procession was followed by the king and his warriors on foot: he nicely + balanced the merits and rewards of the two nations; and the pride of + conquest was blended with the humble temper of Christianity. Thirteen + bashaws, nine standards, and four thousand captives, were unquestionable + trophies; and as all were willing to believe, and none were present to + contradict, the crusaders multiplied, with unblushing confidence, the + myriads of Turks whom they had left on the field of battle. <a + href="#linkInote-22" name="linkInoteref-22" id="linkInoteref-22">22</a> + The most solid proof, and the most salutary consequence, of victory, was a + deputation from the divan to solicit peace, to restore Servia, to ransom + the prisoners, and to evacuate the Hungarian frontier. By this treaty, the + rational objects of the war were obtained: the king, the despot, and + Huniades himself, in the diet of Segedin, were satisfied with public and + private emolument; a truce of ten years was concluded; and the followers + of Jesus and Mahomet, who swore on the Gospel and the Koran, attested the + word of God as the guardian of truth and the avenger of perfidy. In the + place of the Gospel, the Turkish ministers had proposed to substitute the + Eucharist, the real presence of the Catholic deity; but the Christians + refused to profane their holy mysteries; and a superstitious conscience is + less forcibly bound by the spiritual energy, than by the outward and + visible symbols of an oath. <a href="#linkInote-23" name="linkInoteref-23" + id="linkInoteref-23">23</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-22" id="linkInote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkInoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ In their letters to the + emperor Frederic III. the Hungarians slay 80,000 Turks in one battle; but + the modest Julian reduces the slaughter to 6000 or even 2000 infidels, + (Æneas Sylvius in Europ. c. 5, and epist. 44, 81, apud Spondanum.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-23" id="linkInote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkInoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ See the origin of the + Turkish war, and the first expedition of Ladislaus, in the vth and vith + books of the iiid decad of Bonfinius, who, in his division and style, + copies Livy with tolerable success Callimachus (l. ii p. 487—496) is + still more pure and authentic.] + </p> + <p> + During the whole transaction, the cardinal legate had observed a sullen + silence, unwilling to approve, and unable to oppose, the consent of the + king and people. But the diet was not dissolved before Julian was + fortified by the welcome intelligence, that Anatolia was invaded by the + Caramanian, and Thrace by the Greek emperor; that the fleets of Genoa, + Venice, and Burgundy, were masters of the Hellespont; and that the allies, + informed of the victory, and ignorant of the treaty, of Ladislaus, + impatiently waited for the return of his victorious army. "And is it + thus," exclaimed the cardinal, <a href="#linkInote-24" + name="linkInoteref-24" id="linkInoteref-24">24</a> "that you will desert + their expectations and your own fortune? It is to them, to your God, and + your fellow-Christians, that you have pledged your faith; and that prior + obligation annihilates a rash and sacrilegious oath to the enemies of + Christ. His vicar on earth is the Roman pontiff; without whose sanction + you can neither promise nor perform. In his name I absolve your perjury + and sanctify your arms: follow my footsteps in the paths of glory and + salvation; and if still ye have scruples, devolve on my head the + punishment and the sin." This mischievous casuistry was seconded by his + respectable character, and the levity of popular assemblies: war was + resolved, on the same spot where peace had so lately been sworn; and, in + the execution of the treaty, the Turks were assaulted by the Christians; + to whom, with some reason, they might apply the epithet of Infidels. The + falsehood of Ladislaus to his word and oath was palliated by the religion + of the times: the most perfect, or at least the most popular, excuse would + have been the success of his arms and the deliverance of the Eastern + church. But the same treaty which should have bound his conscience had + diminished his strength. On the proclamation of the peace, the French and + German volunteers departed with indignant murmurs: the Poles were + exhausted by distant warfare, and perhaps disgusted with foreign command; + and their palatines accepted the first license, and hastily retired to + their provinces and castles. Even Hungary was divided by faction, or + restrained by a laudable scruple; and the relics of the crusade that + marched in the second expedition were reduced to an inadequate force of + twenty thousand men. A Walachian chief, who joined the royal standard with + his vassals, presumed to remark that their numbers did not exceed the + hunting retinue that sometimes attended the sultan; and the gift of two + horses of matchless speed might admonish Ladislaus of his secret foresight + of the event. But the despot of Servia, after the restoration of his + country and children, was tempted by the promise of new realms; and the + inexperience of the king, the enthusiasm of the legate, and the martial + presumption of Huniades himself, were persuaded that every obstacle must + yield to the invincible virtue of the sword and the cross. After the + passage of the Danube, two roads might lead to Constantinople and the + Hellespont: the one direct, abrupt, and difficult through the mountains of + Hæmus; the other more tedious and secure, over a level country, and along + the shores of the Euxine; in which their flanks, according to the Scythian + discipline, might always be covered by a movable fortification of wagons. + The latter was judiciously preferred: the Catholics marched through the + plains of Bulgaria, burning, with wanton cruelty, the churches and + villages of the Christian natives; and their last station was at Warna, + near the sea-shore; on which the defeat and death of Ladislaus have + bestowed a memorable name. <a href="#linkInote-25" name="linkInoteref-25" + id="linkInoteref-25">25</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-24" id="linkInote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkInoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ I do not pretend to + warrant the literal accuracy of Julian's speech, which is variously worded + by Callimachus, (l. iii. p. 505—507,) Bonfinius, (dec. iii. l. vi. + p. 457, 458,) and other historians, who might indulge their own eloquence, + while they represent one of the orators of the age. But they all agree in + the advice and arguments for perjury, which in the field of controversy + are fiercely attacked by the Protestants, and feebly defended by the + Catholics. The latter are discouraged by the misfortune of Warna.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-25" id="linkInote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkInoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ Warna, under the Grecian + name of Odessus, was a colony of the Milesians, which they denominated + from the hero Ulysses, (Cellarius, tom. i. p. 374. D'Anville, tom. i. p. + 312.) According to Arrian's Periplus of the Euxine, (p. 24, 25, in the + first volume of Hudson's Geographers,) it was situate 1740 stadia, or + furlongs, from the mouth of the Danube, 2140 from Byzantium, and 360 to + the north of a ridge of promontory of Mount Hæmus, which advances into the + sea.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkI2HCH0002" id="linkI2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXVII: Schism Of The Greeks And Latins.—Part II. + </h2> + <p> + It was on this fatal spot, that, instead of finding a confederate fleet to + second their operations, they were alarmed by the approach of Amurath + himself, who had issued from his Magnesian solitude, and transported the + forces of Asia to the defence of Europe. According to some writers, the + Greek emperor had been awed, or seduced, to grant the passage of the + Bosphorus; and an indelible stain of corruption is fixed on the Genoese, + or the pope's nephew, the Catholic admiral, whose mercenary connivance + betrayed the guard of the Hellespont. From Adrianople, the sultan advanced + by hasty marches, at the head of sixty thousand men; and when the + cardinal, and Huniades, had taken a nearer survey of the numbers and order + of the Turks, these ardent warriors proposed the tardy and impracticable + measure of a retreat. The king alone was resolved to conquer or die; and + his resolution had almost been crowned with a glorious and salutary + victory. The princes were opposite to each other in the centre; and the + Beglerbegs, or generals of Anatolia and Romania, commanded on the right + and left, against the adverse divisions of the despot and Huniades. The + Turkish wings were broken on the first onset: but the advantage was fatal; + and the rash victors, in the heat of the pursuit, were carried away far + from the annoyance of the enemy, or the support of their friends. When + Amurath beheld the flight of his squadrons, he despaired of his fortune + and that of the empire: a veteran Janizary seized his horse's bridle; and + he had magnanimity to pardon and reward the soldier who dared to perceive + the terror, and arrest the flight, of his sovereign. A copy of the treaty, + the monument of Christian perfidy, had been displayed in the front of + battle; and it is said, that the sultan in his distress, lifting his eyes + and his hands to heaven, implored the protection of the God of truth; and + called on the prophet Jesus himself to avenge the impious mockery of his + name and religion. <a href="#linkInote-26" name="linkInoteref-26" + id="linkInoteref-26">26</a> With inferior numbers and disordered ranks, + the king of Hungary rushed forward in the confidence of victory, till his + career was stopped by the impenetrable phalanx of the Janizaries. If we + may credit the Ottoman annals, his horse was pierced by the javelin of + Amurath; <a href="#linkInote-27" name="linkInoteref-27" + id="linkInoteref-27">27</a> he fell among the spears of the infantry; and + a Turkish soldier proclaimed with a loud voice, "Hungarians, behold the + head of your king!" The death of Ladislaus was the signal of their defeat. + On his return from an intemperate pursuit, Huniades deplored his error, + and the public loss; he strove to rescue the royal body, till he was + overwhelmed by the tumultuous crowd of the victors and vanquished; and the + last efforts of his courage and conduct were exerted to save the remnant + of his Walachian cavalry. Ten thousand Christians were slain in the + disastrous battle of Warna: the loss of the Turks, more considerable in + numbers, bore a smaller proportion to their total strength; yet the + philosophic sultan was not ashamed to confess, that his ruin must be the + consequence of a second and similar victory. <a href="#linkInote-271" + name="linkInoteref-271" id="linkInoteref-271">271</a> At his command a + column was erected on the spot where Ladislaus had fallen; but the modest + inscription, instead of accusing the rashness, recorded the valor, and + bewailed the misfortune, of the Hungarian youth. <a href="#linkInote-28" + name="linkInoteref-28" id="linkInoteref-28">28</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-26" id="linkInote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkInoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ Some Christian writers + affirm, that he drew from his bosom the host or wafer on which the treaty + had <i>not</i> been sworn. The Moslems suppose, with more simplicity, an + appeal to God and his prophet Jesus, which is likewise insinuated by + Callimachus, (l. iii. p. 516. Spondan. A.D. 1444, No. 8.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-27" id="linkInote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkInoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ A critic will always + distrust these <i>spolia opima</i> of a victorious general, so difficult + for valor to obtain, so easy for flattery to invent, (Cantemir, p. 90, + 91.) Callimachus (l. iii. p. 517) more simply and probably affirms, + supervenitibus Janizaris, telorum multitudine, non jam confossus est, quam + obrutus.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-271" id="linkInote-271"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 271 (<a href="#linkInoteref-271">return</a>)<br /> [ Compare Von Hammer, p. + 463.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-28" id="linkInote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkInoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ Besides some valuable + hints from Æneas Sylvius, which are diligently collected by Spondanus, our + best authorities are three historians of the xvth century, Philippus + Callimachus, (de Rebus a Vladislao Polonorum atque Hungarorum Rege gestis, + libri iii. in Bel. Script. Rerum Hungaricarum, tom. i. p. 433—518,) + Bonfinius, (decad. iii. l. v. p. 460—467,) and Chalcondyles, (l. + vii. p. 165—179.) The two first were Italians, but they passed their + lives in Poland and Hungary, (Fabric. Bibliot. Latin. Med. et Infimæ + Ætatis, tom. i. p. 324. Vossius, de Hist. Latin. l. iii. c. 8, 11. Bayle, + Dictionnaire, Bonfinius.) A small tract of Fælix Petancius, chancellor of + Segnia, (ad calcem Cuspinian. de Cæsaribus, p. 716—722,) represents + the theatre of the war in the xvth century.] + </p> + <p> + Before I lose sight of the field of Warna, I am tempted to pause on the + character and story of two principal actors, the cardinal Julian and John + Huniades. Julian <a href="#linkInote-29" name="linkInoteref-29" + id="linkInoteref-29">29</a> Cæsarini was born of a noble family of Rome: + his studies had embraced both the Latin and Greek learning, both the + sciences of divinity and law; and his versatile genius was equally adapted + to the schools, the camp, and the court. No sooner had he been invested + with the Roman purple, than he was sent into Germany to arm the empire + against the rebels and heretics of Bohemia. The spirit of persecution is + unworthy of a Christian; the military profession ill becomes a priest; but + the former is excused by the times; and the latter was ennobled by the + courage of Julian, who stood dauntless and alone in the disgraceful flight + of the German host. As the pope's legate, he opened the council of Basil; + but the president soon appeared the most strenuous champion of + ecclesiastical freedom; and an opposition of seven years was conducted by + his ability and zeal. After promoting the strongest measures against the + authority and person of Eugenius, some secret motive of interest or + conscience engaged him to desert on a sudden the popular party. The + cardinal withdrew himself from Basil to Ferrara; and, in the debates of + the Greeks and Latins, the two nations admired the dexterity of his + arguments and the depth of his theological erudition. <a + href="#linkInote-30" name="linkInoteref-30" id="linkInoteref-30">30</a> In + his Hungarian embassy, we have already seen the mischievous effects of his + sophistry and eloquence, of which Julian himself was the first victim. The + cardinal, who performed the duties of a priest and a soldier, was lost in + the defeat of Warna. The circumstances of his death are variously related; + but it is believed, that a weighty encumbrance of gold impeded his flight, + and tempted the cruel avarice of some Christian fugitives. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-29" id="linkInote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkInoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ M. Lenfant has described + the origin (Hist. du Concile de Basle, tom. i. p. 247, &c.) and + Bohemian campaign (p. 315, &c.) of Cardinal Julian. His services at + Basil and Ferrara, and his unfortunate end, are occasionally related by + Spondanus, and the continuator of Fleury.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-30" id="linkInote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkInoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ Syropulus honorably + praises the talent of an enemy, (p. 117:) toiauta tina eipen o IoulianoV + peplatusmenwV agan kai logikwV, kai met episthmhV kai deinothtoV + 'RhtprikhV.] + </p> + <p> + From an humble, or at least a doubtful origin, the merit of John Huniades + promoted him to the command of the Hungarian armies. His father was a + Walachian, his mother a Greek: her unknown race might possibly ascend to + the emperors of Constantinople; and the claims of the Walachians, with the + surname of Corvinus, from the place of his nativity, might suggest a thin + pretence for mingling his blood with the patricians of ancient Rome. <a + href="#linkInote-31" name="linkInoteref-31" id="linkInoteref-31">31</a> In + his youth he served in the wars of Italy, and was retained, with twelve + horsemen, by the bishop of Zagrab: the valor of the <i>white knight</i> <a + href="#linkInote-32" name="linkInoteref-32" id="linkInoteref-32">32</a> + was soon conspicuous; he increased his fortunes by a noble and wealthy + marriage; and in the defence of the Hungarian borders he won in the same + year three battles against the Turks. By his influence, Ladislaus of + Poland obtained the crown of Hungary; and the important service was + rewarded by the title and office of Waivod of Transylvania. The first of + Julian's crusades added two Turkish laurels on his brow; and in the public + distress the fatal errors of Warna were forgotten. During the absence and + minority of Ladislaus of Austria, the titular king, Huniades was elected + supreme captain and governor of Hungary; and if envy at first was silenced + by terror, a reign of twelve years supposes the arts of policy as well as + of war. Yet the idea of a consummate general is not delineated in his + campaigns; the white knight fought with the hand rather than the head, as + the chief of desultory Barbarians, who attack without fear and fly without + shame; and his military life is composed of a romantic alternative of + victories and escapes. By the Turks, who employed his name to frighten + their perverse children, he was corruptly denominated <i>Jancus Lain</i>, + or the Wicked: their hatred is the proof of their esteem; the kingdom + which he guarded was inaccessible to their arms; and they felt him most + daring and formidable, when they fondly believed the captain and his + country irrecoverably lost. Instead of confining himself to a defensive + war, four years after the defeat of Warna he again penetrated into the + heart of Bulgaria, and in the plain of Cossova, sustained, till the third + day, the shock of the Ottoman army, four times more numerous than his own. + As he fled alone through the woods of Walachia, the hero was surprised by + two robbers; but while they disputed a gold chain that hung at his neck, + he recovered his sword, slew the one, terrified the other, and, after new + perils of captivity or death, consoled by his presence an afflicted + kingdom. But the last and most glorious action of his life was the defence + of Belgrade against the powers of Mahomet the Second in person. After a + siege of forty days, the Turks, who had already entered the town, were + compelled to retreat; and the joyful nations celebrated Huniades and + Belgrade as the bulwarks of Christendom. <a href="#linkInote-33" + name="linkInoteref-33" id="linkInoteref-33">33</a> About a month after + this great deliverance, the champion expired; and his most splendid + epitaph is the regret of the Ottoman prince, who sighed that he could no + longer hope for revenge against the single antagonist who had triumphed + over his arms. On the first vacancy of the throne, Matthias Corvinus, a + youth of eighteen years of age, was elected and crowned by the grateful + Hungarians. His reign was prosperous and long: Matthias aspired to the + glory of a conqueror and a saint: but his purest merit is the + encouragement of learning; and the Latin orators and historians, who were + invited from Italy by the son, have shed the lustre of their eloquence on + the father's character. <a href="#linkInote-34" name="linkInoteref-34" + id="linkInoteref-34">34</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-31" id="linkInote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkInoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ See Bonfinius, decad. + iii. l. iv. p. 423. Could the Italian historian pronounce, or the king of + Hungary hear, without a blush, the absurd flattery which confounded the + name of a Walachian village with the casual, though glorious, epithet of a + single branch of the Valerian family at Rome?] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-32" id="linkInote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkInoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ Philip de Comines, + (Mémoires, l. vi. c. 13,) from the tradition of the times, mentions him + with high encomiums, but under the whimsical name of the Chevalier Blanc + de Valaigne, (Valachia.) The Greek Chalcondyles, and the Turkish annals of + Leunclavius, presume to accuse his fidelity or valor.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-33" id="linkInote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkInoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ See Bonfinius (decad. + iii. l. viii. p. 492) and Spondanus, (A.D. 456, No. 1—7.) Huniades + shared the glory of the defence of Belgrade with Capistran, a Franciscan + friar; and in their respective narratives, neither the saint nor the hero + condescend to take notice of his rival's merit.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-34" id="linkInote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkInoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ See Bonfinius, decad. + iii. l. viii.—decad. iv. l. viii. The observations of Spondanus on + the life and character of Matthias Corvinus are curious and critical, + (A.D. 1464, No. 1, 1475, No. 6, 1476, No. 14—16, 1490, No. 4, 5.) + Italian fame was the object of his vanity. His actions are celebrated in + the Epitome Rerum Hungaricarum (p. 322—412) of Peter Ranzanus, a + Sicilian. His wise and facetious sayings are registered by Galestus + Martius of Narni, (528—568,) and we have a particular narrative of + his wedding and coronation. These three tracts are all contained in the + first vol. of Bel's Scriptores Rerum Hungaricarum.] + </p> + <p> + In the list of heroes, John Huniades and Scanderbeg are commonly + associated; <a href="#linkInote-35" name="linkInoteref-35" + id="linkInoteref-35">35</a> and they are both entitled to our notice, + since their occupation of the Ottoman arms delayed the ruin of the Greek + empire. John Castriot, the father of Scanderbeg, <a href="#linkInote-36" + name="linkInoteref-36" id="linkInoteref-36">36</a> was the hereditary + prince of a small district of Epirus or Albania, between the mountains and + the Adriatic Sea. Unable to contend with the sultan's power, Castriot + submitted to the hard conditions of peace and tribute: he delivered his + four sons as the pledges of his fidelity; and the Christian youths, after + receiving the mark of circumcision, were instructed in the Mahometan + religion, and trained in the arms and arts of Turkish policy. <a + href="#linkInote-37" name="linkInoteref-37" id="linkInoteref-37">37</a> + The three elder brothers were confounded in the crowd of slaves; and the + poison to which their deaths are ascribed cannot be verified or disproved + by any positive evidence. Yet the suspicion is in a great measure removed + by the kind and paternal treatment of George Castriot, the fourth brother, + who, from his tender youth, displayed the strength and spirit of a + soldier. The successive overthrow of a Tartar and two Persians, who + carried a proud defiance to the Turkish court, recommended him to the + favor of Amurath, and his Turkish appellation of Scanderbeg, (<i>Iskender + beg</i>,) or the lord Alexander, is an indelible memorial of his glory and + servitude. His father's principality was reduced into a province; but the + loss was compensated by the rank and title of Sanjiak, a command of five + thousand horse, and the prospect of the first dignities of the empire. He + served with honor in the wars of Europe and Asia; and we may smile at the + art or credulity of the historian, who supposes, that in every encounter + he spared the Christians, while he fell with a thundering arm on his + Mussulman foes. The glory of Huniades is without reproach: he fought in + the defence of his religion and country; but the enemies who applaud the + patriot, have branded his rival with the name of traitor and apostate. In + the eyes of the Christian, the rebellion of Scanderbeg is justified by his + father's wrongs, the ambiguous death of his three brothers, his own + degradation, and the slavery of his country; and they adore the generous, + though tardy, zeal, with which he asserted the faith and independence of + his ancestors. But he had imbibed from his ninth year the doctrines of the + Koran; he was ignorant of the Gospel; the religion of a soldier is + determined by authority and habit; nor is it easy to conceive what new + illumination at the age of forty <a href="#linkInote-38" + name="linkInoteref-38" id="linkInoteref-38">38</a> could be poured into + his soul. His motives would be less exposed to the suspicion of interest + or revenge, had he broken his chain from the moment that he was sensible + of its weight: but a long oblivion had surely impaired his original right; + and every year of obedience and reward had cemented the mutual bond of the + sultan and his subject. If Scanderbeg had long harbored the belief of + Christianity and the intention of revolt, a worthy mind must condemn the + base dissimulation, that could serve only to betray, that could promise + only to be forsworn, that could actively join in the temporal and + spiritual perdition of so many thousands of his unhappy brethren. Shall we + praise a secret correspondence with Huniades, while he commanded the + vanguard of the Turkish army? shall we excuse the desertion of his + standard, a treacherous desertion which abandoned the victory to the + enemies of his benefactor? In the confusion of a defeat, the eye of + Scanderbeg was fixed on the Reis Effendi or principal secretary: with the + dagger at his breast, he extorted a firman or patent for the government of + Albania; and the murder of the guiltless scribe and his train prevented + the consequences of an immediate discovery. With some bold companions, to + whom he had revealed his design he escaped in the night, by rapid marches, + from the field or battle to his paternal mountains. The gates of Croya + were opened to the royal mandate; and no sooner did he command the + fortress, than George Castriot dropped the mask of dissimulation; abjured + the prophet and the sultan, and proclaimed himself the avenger of his + family and country. The names of religion and liberty provoked a general + revolt: the Albanians, a martial race, were unanimous to live and die with + their hereditary prince; and the Ottoman garrisons were indulged in the + choice of martyrdom or baptism. In the assembly of the states of Epirus, + Scanderbeg was elected general of the Turkish war; and each of the allies + engaged to furnish his respective proportion of men and money. From these + contributions, from his patrimonial estate, and from the valuable + salt-pits of Selina, he drew an annual revenue of two hundred thousand + ducats; <a href="#linkInote-39" name="linkInoteref-39" id="linkInoteref-39">39</a> + and the entire sum, exempt from the demands of luxury, was strictly + appropriated to the public use. His manners were popular; but his + discipline was severe; and every superfluous vice was banished from his + camp: his example strengthened his command; and under his conduct, the + Albanians were invincible in their own opinion and that of their enemies. + The bravest adventurers of France and Germany were allured by his fame and + retained in his service: his standing militia consisted of eight thousand + horse and seven thousand foot; the horses were small, the men were active; + but he viewed with a discerning eye the difficulties and resources of the + mountains; and, at the blaze of the beacons, the whole nation was + distributed in the strongest posts. With such unequal arms Scanderbeg + resisted twenty-three years the powers of the Ottoman empire; and two + conquerors, Amurath the Second, and his greater son, were repeatedly + baffled by a rebel, whom they pursued with seeming contempt and implacable + resentment. At the head of sixty thousand horse and forty thousand + Janizaries, Amurath entered Albania: he might ravage the open country, + occupy the defenceless towns, convert the churches into mosques, + circumcise the Christian youths, and punish with death his adult and + obstinate captives: but the conquests of the sultan were confined to the + petty fortress of Sfetigrade; and the garrison, invincible to his arms, + was oppressed by a paltry artifice and a superstitious scruple. <a + href="#linkInote-40" name="linkInoteref-40" id="linkInoteref-40">40</a> + Amurath retired with shame and loss from the walls of Croya, the castle + and residence of the Castriots; the march, the siege, the retreat, were + harassed by a vexatious, and almost invisible, adversary; <a + href="#linkInote-41" name="linkInoteref-41" id="linkInoteref-41">41</a> + and the disappointment might tend to imbitter, perhaps to shorten, the + last days of the sultan. <a href="#linkInote-42" name="linkInoteref-42" + id="linkInoteref-42">42</a> In the fulness of conquest, Mahomet the Second + still felt at his bosom this domestic thorn: his lieutenants were + permitted to negotiate a truce; and the Albanian prince may justly be + praised as a firm and able champion of his national independence. The + enthusiasm of chivalry and religion has ranked him with the names of + Alexander and Pyrrhus; nor would they blush to acknowledge their intrepid + countryman: but his narrow dominion, and slender powers, must leave him at + an humble distance below the heroes of antiquity, who triumphed over the + East and the Roman legions. His splendid achievements, the bashaws whom he + encountered, the armies that he discomfited, and the three thousand Turks + who were slain by his single hand, must be weighed in the scales of + suspicious criticism. Against an illiterate enemy, and in the dark + solitude of Epirus, his partial biographers may safely indulge the + latitude of romance: but their fictions are exposed by the light of + Italian history; and they afford a strong presumption against their own + truth, by a fabulous tale of his exploits, when he passed the Adriatic + with eight hundred horse to the succor of the king of Naples. <a + href="#linkInote-43" name="linkInoteref-43" id="linkInoteref-43">43</a> + Without disparagement to his fame, they might have owned, that he was + finally oppressed by the Ottoman powers: in his extreme danger he applied + to Pope Pius the Second for a refuge in the ecclesiastical state; and his + resources were almost exhausted, since Scanderbeg died a fugitive at + Lissus, on the Venetian territory. <a href="#linkInote-44" + name="linkInoteref-44" id="linkInoteref-44">44</a> His sepulchre was soon + violated by the Turkish conquerors; but the Janizaries, who wore his bones + enchased in a bracelet, declared by this superstitious amulet their + involuntary reverence for his valor. The instant ruin of his country may + redound to the hero's glory; yet, had he balanced the consequences of + submission and resistance, a patriot perhaps would have declined the + unequal contest which must depend on the life and genius of one man. + Scanderbeg might indeed be supported by the rational, though fallacious, + hope, that the pope, the king of Naples, and the Venetian republic, would + join in the defence of a free and Christian people, who guarded the + sea-coast of the Adriatic, and the narrow passage from Greece to Italy. + His infant son was saved from the national shipwreck; the Castriots <a + href="#linkInote-45" name="linkInoteref-45" id="linkInoteref-45">45</a> + were invested with a Neapolitan dukedom, and their blood continues to flow + in the noblest families of the realm. A colony of Albanian fugitives + obtained a settlement in Calabria, and they preserve at this day the + language and manners of their ancestors. <a href="#linkInote-46" + name="linkInoteref-46" id="linkInoteref-46">46</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-35" id="linkInote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkInoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ They are ranked by Sir + William Temple, in his pleasing Essay on Heroic Virtue, (Works, vol. iii. + p. 385,) among the seven chiefs who have deserved without wearing, a royal + crown; Belisarius, Narses, Gonsalvo of Cordova, William first prince of + Orange, Alexander duke of Parma, John Huniades, and George Castriot, or + Scanderbeg.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-36" id="linkInote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkInoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ I could wish for some + simple authentic memoirs of a friend of Scanderbeg, which would introduce + me to the man, the time, and the place. In the old and national history of + Marinus Barletius, a priest of Scodra, (de Vita. Moribus, et Rebus gestis + Georgii Castrioti, &c. libri xiii. p. 367. Argentorat. 1537, in fol.,) + his gaudy and cumbersome robes are stuck with many false jewels. See + likewise Chalcondyles, l vii. p. 185, l. viii. p. 229.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-37" id="linkInote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkInoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ His circumcision, + education, &c., are marked by Marinus with brevity and reluctance, (l. + i. p. 6, 7.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-38" id="linkInote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkInoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ Since Scanderbeg died + A.D. 1466, in the lxiiid year of his age, (Marinus, l. xiii. p. 370,) he + was born in 1403; since he was torn from his parents by the Turks, when he + was <i>novennis</i>, (Marinus, l. i. p. 1, 6,) that event must have + happened in 1412, nine years before the accession of Amurath II., who must + have inherited, not acquired the Albanian slave. Spondanus has remarked + this inconsistency, A.D. 1431, No. 31, 1443, No. 14.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-39" id="linkInote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkInoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ His revenue and forces + are luckily given by Marinus, (l. ii. p. 44.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-40" id="linkInote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkInoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ There were two Dibras, + the upper and lower, the Bulgarian and Albanian: the former, 70 miles from + Croya, (l. i. p. 17,) was contiguous to the fortress of Sfetigrade, whose + inhabitants refused to drink from a well into which a dead dog had + traitorously been cast, (l. v. p. 139, 140.) We want a good map of + Epirus.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-41" id="linkInote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkInoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ Compare the Turkish + narrative of Cantemir (p. 92) with the pompous and prolix declamation in + the ivth, vth, and vith books of the Albanian priest, who has been copied + by the tribe of strangers and moderns.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-42" id="linkInote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkInoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ In honor of his hero, + Barletius (l. vi. p. 188—192) kills the sultan by disease indeed, + under the walls of Croya. But this audacious fiction is disproved by the + Greeks and Turks, who agree in the time and manner of Amurath's death at + Adrianople.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-43" id="linkInote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkInoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ See the marvels of his + Calabrian expedition in the ixth and xth books of Marinus Barletius, which + may be rectified by the testimony or silence of Muratori, (Annali + d'Italia, tom. xiii. p. 291,) and his original authors, (Joh. Simonetta de + Rebus Francisci Sfortiæ, in Muratori, Script. Rerum Ital. tom. xxi. p. + 728, et alios.) The Albanian cavalry, under the name of <i>Stradiots</i>, + soon became famous in the wars of Italy, (Mémoires de Comines, l. viii. c. + 5.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-44" id="linkInote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkInoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ Spondanus, from the best + evidence, and the most rational criticism, has reduced the giant + Scanderbeg to the human size, (A.D. 1461, No. 20, 1463, No. 9, 1465, No. + 12, 13, 1467, No. 1.) His own letter to the pope, and the testimony of + Phranza, (l. iii. c. 28,) a refugee in the neighboring isle of Corfu, + demonstrate his last distress, which is awkwardly concealed by Marinus + Barletius, (l. x.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-45" id="linkInote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkInoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ See the family of the + Castriots, in Ducange, (Fam. Dalmaticæ, &c, xviii. p. 348—350.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-46" id="linkInote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkInoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ This colony of Albanese + is mentioned by Mr. Swinburne, (Travels into the Two Sicilies, vol. i. p. + 350—354.)] + </p> + <p> + In the long career of the decline and fall of the Roman empire, I have + reached at length the last reign of the princes of Constantinople, who so + feebly sustained the name and majesty of the Cæsars. On the decease of + John Palæologus, who survived about four years the Hungarian crusade, <a + href="#linkInote-47" name="linkInoteref-47" id="linkInoteref-47">47</a> + the royal family, by the death of Andronicus and the monastic profession + of Isidore, was reduced to three princes, Constantine, Demetrius, and + Thomas, the surviving sons of the emperor Manuel. Of these the first and + the last were far distant in the Morea; but Demetrius, who possessed the + domain of Selybria, was in the suburbs, at the head of a party: his + ambition was not chilled by the public distress; and his conspiracy with + the Turks and the schismatics had already disturbed the peace of his + country. The funeral of the late emperor was accelerated with singular and + even suspicious haste: the claim of Demetrius to the vacant throne was + justified by a trite and flimsy sophism, that he was born in the purple, + the eldest son of his father's reign. But the empress-mother, the senate + and soldiers, the clergy and people, were unanimous in the cause of the + lawful successor: and the despot Thomas, who, ignorant of the change, + accidentally returned to the capital, asserted with becoming zeal the + interest of his absent brother. An ambassador, the historian Phranza, was + immediately despatched to the court of Adrianople. Amurath received him + with honor and dismissed him with gifts; but the gracious approbation of + the Turkish sultan announced his supremacy, and the approaching downfall + of the Eastern empire. By the hands of two illustrious deputies, the + Imperial crown was placed at Sparta on the head of Constantine. In the + spring he sailed from the Morea, escaped the encounter of a Turkish + squadron, enjoyed the acclamations of his subjects, celebrated the + festival of a new reign, and exhausted by his donatives the treasure, or + rather the indigence, of the state. The emperor immediately resigned to + his brothers the possession of the Morea; and the brittle friendship of + the two princes, Demetrius and Thomas, was confirmed in their mother's + presence by the frail security of oaths and embraces. His next occupation + was the choice of a consort. A daughter of the doge of Venice had been + proposed; but the Byzantine nobles objected the distance between an + hereditary monarch and an elective magistrate; and in their subsequent + distress, the chief of that powerful republic was not unmindful of the + affront. Constantine afterwards hesitated between the royal families of + Trebizond and Georgia; and the embassy of Phranza represents in his public + and private life the last days of the Byzantine empire. <a + href="#linkInote-48" name="linkInoteref-48" id="linkInoteref-48">48</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-47" id="linkInote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkInoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ The Chronology of + Phranza is clear and authentic; but instead of four years and seven + months, Spondanus (A.D. 1445, No. 7,) assigns seven or eight years to the + reign of the last Constantine which he deduces from a spurious epistle of + Eugenius IV. to the king of Æthiopia.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-48" id="linkInote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkInoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ Phranza (l. iii. c. 1—6) + deserves credit and esteem.] + </p> + <p> + The <i>protovestiare</i>, or great chamberlain, Phranza sailed from + Constantinople as the minister of a bridegroom; and the relics of wealth + and luxury were applied to his pompous appearance. His numerous retinue + consisted of nobles and guards, of physicians and monks: he was attended + by a band of music; and the term of his costly embassy was protracted + above two years. On his arrival in Georgia or Iberia, the natives from the + towns and villages flocked around the strangers; and such was their + simplicity, that they were delighted with the effects, without + understanding the cause, of musical harmony. Among the crowd was an old + man, above a hundred years of age, who had formerly been carried away a + captive by the Barbarians, <a href="#linkInote-49" name="linkInoteref-49" + id="linkInoteref-49">49</a> and who amused his hearers with a tale of the + wonders of India, <a href="#linkInote-50" name="linkInoteref-50" + id="linkInoteref-50">50</a> from whence he had returned to Portugal by an + unknown sea. <a href="#linkInote-51" name="linkInoteref-51" + id="linkInoteref-51">51</a> From this hospitable land, Phranza proceeded + to the court of Trebizond, where he was informed by the Greek prince of + the recent decease of Amurath. Instead of rejoicing in the deliverance, + the experienced statesman expressed his apprehension, that an ambitious + youth would not long adhere to the sage and pacific system of his father. + After the sultan's decease, his Christian wife, Maria, <a + href="#linkInote-52" name="linkInoteref-52" id="linkInoteref-52">52</a> + the daughter of the Servian despot, had been honorably restored to her + parents; on the fame of her beauty and merit, she was recommended by the + ambassador as the most worthy object of the royal choice; and Phranza + recapitulates and refutes the specious objections that might be raised + against the proposal. The majesty of the purple would ennoble an unequal + alliance; the bar of affinity might be removed by liberal alms and the + dispensation of the church; the disgrace of Turkish nuptials had been + repeatedly overlooked; and, though the fair Maria was nearly fifty years + of age, she might yet hope to give an heir to the empire. Constantine + listened to the advice, which was transmitted in the first ship that + sailed from Trebizond; but the factions of the court opposed his marriage; + and it was finally prevented by the pious vow of the sultana, who ended + her days in the monastic profession. Reduced to the first alternative, the + choice of Phranza was decided in favor of a Georgian princess; and the + vanity of her father was dazzled by the glorious alliance. Instead of + demanding, according to the primitive and national custom, a price for his + daughter, <a href="#linkInote-53" name="linkInoteref-53" + id="linkInoteref-53">53</a> he offered a portion of fifty-six thousand, + with an annual pension of five thousand, ducats; and the services of the + ambassador were repaid by an assurance, that, as his son had been adopted + in baptism by the emperor, the establishment of his daughter should be the + peculiar care of the empress of Constantinople. On the return of Phranza, + the treaty was ratified by the Greek monarch, who with his own hand + impressed three vermilion crosses on the golden bull, and assured the + Georgian envoy that in the spring his galleys should conduct the bride to + her Imperial palace. But Constantine embraced his faithful servant, not + with the cold approbation of a sovereign, but with the warm confidence of + a friend, who, after a long absence, is impatient to pour his secrets into + the bosom of his friend. "Since the death of my mother and of Cantacuzene, + who alone advised me without interest or passion, <a href="#linkInote-54" + name="linkInoteref-54" id="linkInoteref-54">54</a> I am surrounded," said + the emperor, "by men whom I can neither love nor trust, nor esteem. You + are not a stranger to Lucas Notaras, the great admiral; obstinately + attached to his own sentiments, he declares, both in private and public, + that his sentiments are the absolute measure of my thoughts and actions. + The rest of the courtiers are swayed by their personal or factious views; + and how can I consult the monks on questions of policy and marriage? I + have yet much employment for your diligence and fidelity. In the spring + you shall engage one of my brothers to solicit the succor of the Western + powers; from the Morea you shall sail to Cyprus on a particular + commission; and from thence proceed to Georgia to receive and conduct the + future empress."—"Your commands," replied Phranza, "are + irresistible; but deign, great sir," he added, with a serious smile, "to + consider, that if I am thus perpetually absent from my family, my wife may + be tempted either to seek another husband, or to throw herself into a + monastery." After laughing at his apprehensions, the emperor more gravely + consoled him by the pleasing assurance that <i>this</i> should be his last + service abroad, and that he destined for his son a wealthy and noble + heiress; for himself, the important office of great logothete, or + principal minister of state. The marriage was immediately stipulated: but + the office, however incompatible with his own, had been usurped by the + ambition of the admiral. Some delay was requisite to negotiate a consent + and an equivalent; and the nomination of Phranza was half declared, and + half suppressed, lest it might be displeasing to an insolent and powerful + favorite. The winter was spent in the preparations of his embassy; and + Phranza had resolved, that the youth his son should embrace this + opportunity of foreign travel, and be left, on the appearance of danger, + with his maternal kindred of the Morea. Such were the private and public + designs, which were interrupted by a Turkish war, and finally buried in + the ruins of the empire. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-49" id="linkInote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkInoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ Suppose him to have been + captured in 1394, in Timour's first war in Georgia, (Sherefeddin, l. iii. + c. 50;) he might follow his Tartar master into Hindostan in 1398, and from + thence sail to the spice islands.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-50" id="linkInote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkInoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ The happy and pious + Indians lived a hundred and fifty years, and enjoyed the most perfect + productions of the vegetable and mineral kingdoms. The animals were on a + large scale: dragons seventy cubits, ants (the <i>formica Indica</i>) nine + inches long, sheep like elephants, elephants like sheep. Quidlibet + audendi, &c.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-51" id="linkInote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkInoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ He sailed in a country + vessel from the spice islands to one of the ports of the exterior India; + invenitque navem grandem <i>Ibericam</i> quâ in <i>Portugalliam</i> est + delatus. This passage, composed in 1477, (Phranza, l. iii. c. 30,) twenty + years before the discovery of the Cape of Good Hope, is spurious or + wonderful. But this new geography is sullied by the old and incompatible + error which places the source of the Nile in India.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-52" id="linkInote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkInoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantemir, (p. 83,) who + styles her the daughter of Lazarus Ogli, and the Helen of the Servians, + places her marriage with Amurath in the year 1424. It will not easily be + believed, that in six-and-twenty years' cohabitation, the sultan corpus + ejus non tetigit. After the taking of Constantinople, she fled to Mahomet + II., (Phranza, l. iii. c. 22.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-53" id="linkInote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkInoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ The classical reader + will recollect the offers of Agamemnon, (Iliad, c. v. 144,) and the + general practice of antiquity.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkInote-54" id="linkInote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkInoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantacuzene (I am + ignorant of his relation to the emperor of that name) was great domestic, + a firm assertor of the Greek creed, and a brother of the queen of Servia, + whom he visited with the character of ambassador, (Syropulus, p. 37, 38, + 45.)] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> ======================= <a name="linkJ2HCH0001" + id="linkJ2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + Chapter LXVIII: Reign Of Mahomet The Second, Extinction Of Eastern Empire.—Part + I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Reign And Character Of Mahomet The Second.—Siege, Assault, + And Final Conquest, Of Constantinople By The Turks.—Death + Of Constantine Palæologus.—Servitude Of The Greeks.— + Extinction Of The Roman Empire In The East.—Consternation + Of Europe.—Conquests And Death Of Mahomet The Second. +</pre> + <p> + The siege of Constantinople by the Turks attracts our first attention to + the person and character of the great destroyer. Mahomet the Second <a + href="#linkJnote-1" name="linkJnoteref-1" id="linkJnoteref-1">1</a> was + the son of the second Amurath; and though his mother has been decorated + with the titles of Christian and princess, she is more probably confounded + with the numerous concubines who peopled from every climate the harem of + the sultan. His first education and sentiments were those of a devout + Mussulman; and as often as he conversed with an infidel, he purified his + hands and face by the legal rites of ablution. Age and empire appear to + have relaxed this narrow bigotry: his aspiring genius disdained to + acknowledge a power above his own; and in his looser hours he presumed (it + is said) to brand the prophet of Mecca as a robber and impostor. Yet the + sultan persevered in a decent reverence for the doctrine and discipline of + the Koran: <a href="#linkJnote-2" name="linkJnoteref-2" id="linkJnoteref-2">2</a> + his private indiscretion must have been sacred from the vulgar ear; and we + should suspect the credulity of strangers and sectaries, so prone to + believe that a mind which is hardened against truth must be armed with + superior contempt for absurdity and error. Under the tuition of the most + skilful masters, Mahomet advanced with an early and rapid progress in the + paths of knowledge; and besides his native tongue it is affirmed that he + spoke or understood five languages, <a href="#linkJnote-3" + name="linkJnoteref-3" id="linkJnoteref-3">3</a> the Arabic, the Persian, + the Chaldæan or Hebrew, the Latin, and the Greek. The Persian might indeed + contribute to his amusement, and the Arabic to his edification; and such + studies are familiar to the Oriental youth. In the intercourse of the + Greeks and Turks, a conqueror might wish to converse with the people over + which he was ambitious to reign: his own praises in Latin poetry <a + href="#linkJnote-4" name="linkJnoteref-4" id="linkJnoteref-4">4</a> or + prose <a href="#linkJnote-5" name="linkJnoteref-5" id="linkJnoteref-5">5</a> + might find a passage to the royal ear; but what use or merit could + recommend to the statesman or the scholar the uncouth dialect of his + Hebrew slaves? The history and geography of the world were familiar to his + memory: the lives of the heroes of the East, perhaps of the West, <a + href="#linkJnote-6" name="linkJnoteref-6" id="linkJnoteref-6">6</a> + excited his emulation: his skill in astrology is excused by the folly of + the times, and supposes some rudiments of mathematical science; and a + profane taste for the arts is betrayed in his liberal invitation and + reward of the painters of Italy. <a href="#linkJnote-7" + name="linkJnoteref-7" id="linkJnoteref-7">7</a> But the influence of + religion and learning were employed without effect on his savage and + licentious nature. I will not transcribe, nor do I firmly believe, the + stories of his fourteen pages, whose bellies were ripped open in search of + a stolen melon; or of the beauteous slave, whose head he severed from her + body, to convince the Janizaries that their master was not the votary of + love. <a href="#linkJnote-701" name="linkJnoteref-701" + id="linkJnoteref-701">701</a> His sobriety is attested by the silence of + the Turkish annals, which accuse three, and three only, of the Ottoman + line of the vice of drunkenness. <a href="#linkJnote-8" + name="linkJnoteref-8" id="linkJnoteref-8">8</a> But it cannot be denied + that his passions were at once furious and inexorable; that in the palace, + as in the field, a torrent of blood was spilt on the slightest + provocation; and that the noblest of the captive youth were often + dishonored by his unnatural lust. In the Albanian war he studied the + lessons, and soon surpassed the example, of his father; and the conquest + of two empires, twelve kingdoms, and two hundred cities, a vain and + flattering account, is ascribed to his invincible sword. He was doubtless + a soldier, and possibly a general; Constantinople has sealed his glory; + but if we compare the means, the obstacles, and the achievements, Mahomet + the Second must blush to sustain a parallel with Alexander or Timour. + Under his command, the Ottoman forces were always more numerous than their + enemies; yet their progress was bounded by the Euphrates and the Adriatic; + and his arms were checked by Huniades and Scanderbeg, by the Rhodian + knights and by the Persian king. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-1" id="linkJnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ For the character of + Mahomet II. it is dangerous to trust either the Turks or the Christians. + The most moderate picture appears to be drawn by Phranza, (l. i. c. 33,) + whose resentment had cooled in age and solitude; see likewise Spondanus, + (A.D. 1451, No. 11,) and the continuator of Fleury, (tom. xxii. p. 552,) + the <i>Elogia</i> of Paulus Jovius, (l. iii. p. 164—166,) and the + Dictionnaire de Bayle, (tom. iii. p. 273—279.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-2" id="linkJnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantemir, (p. 115.) and + the mosques which he founded, attest his public regard for religion. + Mahomet freely disputed with the Gennadius on the two religions, (Spond. + A.D. 1453, No. 22.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-3" id="linkJnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ Quinque linguas præter + suam noverat, Græcam, Latinam, Chaldaicam, Persicam. The Latin translator + of Phranza has dropped the Arabic, which the Koran must recommend to every + Mussulman. * Note: It appears in the original Greek text, p. 95, edit. + Bonn.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-4" id="linkJnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ Philelphus, by a Latin + ode, requested and obtained the liberty of his wife's mother and sisters + from the conqueror of Constantinople. It was delivered into the sultan's + hands by the envoys of the duke of Milan. Philelphus himself was suspected + of a design of retiring to Constantinople; yet the orator often sounded + the trumpet of holy war, (see his Life by M. Lancelot, in the Mémoires de + l'Académie des Inscriptions, tom. x. p. 718, 724, &c.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-5" id="linkJnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ Robert Valturio published + at Verona, in 1483, his xii. books de Re Militari, in which he first + mentions the use of bombs. By his patron Sigismund Malatesta, prince of + Rimini, it had been addressed with a Latin epistle to Mahomet II.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-6" id="linkJnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ According to Phranza, he + assiduously studied the lives and actions of Alexander, Augustus, + Constantine, and Theodosius. I have read somewhere, that Plutarch's Lives + were translated by his orders into the Turkish language. If the sultan + himself understood Greek, it must have been for the benefit of his + subjects. Yet these lives are a school of freedom as well as of valor. * + Note: Von Hammer disdainfully rejects this fable of Mahomet's knowledge of + languages. Knolles adds, that he delighted in reading the history of + Alexander the Great, and of Julius Cæsar. The former, no doubt, was the + Persian legend, which, it is remarkable, came back to Europe, and was + popular throughout the middle ages as the "Romaunt of Alexander." The + founder of the Imperial dynasty of Rome, according to M. Von Hammer, is + altogether unknown in the East. Mahomet was a great patron of Turkish + literature: the romantic poems of Persia were translated, or imitated, + under his patronage. Von Hammer vol ii. p. 268.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-7" id="linkJnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ The famous Gentile + Bellino, whom he had invited from Venice, was dismissed with a chain and + collar of gold, and a purse of 3000 ducats. With Voltaire I laugh at the + foolish story of a slave purposely beheaded to instruct the painter in the + action of the muscles.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-701" id="linkJnote-701"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 701 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-701">return</a>)<br /> [ This story, the + subject of Johnson's Irene, is rejected by M. Von Hammer, vol. ii. p. 208. + The German historian's general estimate of Mahomet's character agrees in + its more marked features with Gibbon's.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-8" id="linkJnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ These Imperial drunkards + were Soliman I., Selim II., and Amurath IV., (Cantemir, p. 61.) The sophis + of Persia can produce a more regular succession; and in the last age, our + European travellers were the witnesses and companions of their revels.] + </p> + <p> + In the reign of Amurath, he twice tasted of royalty, and twice descended + from the throne: his tender age was incapable of opposing his father's + restoration, but never could he forgive the viziers who had recommended + that salutary measure. His nuptials were celebrated with the daughter of a + Turkman emir; and, after a festival of two months, he departed from + Adrianople with his bride, to reside in the government of Magnesia. Before + the end of six weeks, he was recalled by a sudden message from the divan, + which announced the decease of Amurath, and the mutinous spirit of the + Janizaries. His speed and vigor commanded their obedience: he passed the + Hellespont with a chosen guard: and at the distance of a mile from + Adrianople, the viziers and emirs, the imams and cadhis, the soldiers and + the people, fell prostrate before the new sultan. They affected to weep, + they affected to rejoice: he ascended the throne at the age of twenty-one + years, and removed the cause of sedition by the death, the inevitable + death, of his infant brothers. <a href="#linkJnote-9" name="linkJnoteref-9" + id="linkJnoteref-9">9</a> <a href="#linkJnote-901" name="linkJnoteref-901" + id="linkJnoteref-901">901</a> The ambassadors of Europe and Asia soon + appeared to congratulate his accession and solicit his friendship; and to + all he spoke the language of moderation and peace. The confidence of the + Greek emperor was revived by the solemn oaths and fair assurances with + which he sealed the ratification of the treaty: and a rich domain on the + banks of the Strymon was assigned for the annual payment of three hundred + thousand aspers, the pension of an Ottoman prince, who was detained at his + request in the Byzantine court. Yet the neighbors of Mahomet might tremble + at the severity with which a youthful monarch reformed the pomp of his + father's household: the expenses of luxury were applied to those of + ambition, and a useless train of seven thousand falconers was either + dismissed from his service, or enlisted in his troops. <a + href="#linkJnote-902" name="linkJnoteref-902" id="linkJnoteref-902">902</a> + In the first summer of his reign, he visited with an army the Asiatic + provinces; but after humbling the pride, Mahomet accepted the submission, + of the Caramanian, that he might not be diverted by the smallest obstacle + from the execution of his great design. <a href="#linkJnote-10" + name="linkJnoteref-10" id="linkJnoteref-10">10</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-9" id="linkJnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ Calapin, one of these + royal infants, was saved from his cruel brother, and baptized at Rome + under the name of Callistus Othomannus. The emperor Frederic III. + presented him with an estate in Austria, where he ended his life; and + Cuspinian, who in his youth conversed with the aged prince at Vienna, + applauds his piety and wisdom, (de Cæsaribus, p. 672, 673.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-901" id="linkJnote-901"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 901 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-901">return</a>)<br /> [ Ahmed, the son of a + Greek princess, was the object of his especial jealousy. Von Hammer, p. + 501.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-902" id="linkJnote-902"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 902 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-902">return</a>)<br /> [ The Janizaries + obtained, for the first time, a gift on the accession of a new sovereign, + p. 504.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-10" id="linkJnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ See the accession of + Mahomet II. in Ducas, (c. 33,) Phranza, (l. i. c. 33, l. iii. c. 2,) + Chalcondyles, (l. vii. p. 199,) and Cantemir, (p. 96.)] + </p> + <p> + The Mahometan, and more especially the Turkish casuists, have pronounced + that no promise can bind the faithful against the interest and duty of + their religion; and that the sultan may abrogate his own treaties and + those of his predecessors. The justice and magnanimity of Amurath had + scorned this immoral privilege; but his son, though the proudest of men, + could stoop from ambition to the basest arts of dissimulation and deceit. + Peace was on his lips, while war was in his heart: he incessantly sighed + for the possession of Constantinople; and the Greeks, by their own + indiscretion, afforded the first pretence of the fatal rupture. <a + href="#linkJnote-11" name="linkJnoteref-11" id="linkJnoteref-11">11</a> + Instead of laboring to be forgotten, their ambassadors pursued his camp, + to demand the payment, and even the increase, of their annual stipend: the + divan was importuned by their complaints, and the vizier, a secret friend + of the Christians, was constrained to deliver the sense of his brethren. + "Ye foolish and miserable Romans," said Calil, "we know your devices, and + ye are ignorant of your own danger! The scrupulous Amurath is no more; his + throne is occupied by a young conqueror, whom no laws can bind, and no + obstacles can resist: and if you escape from his hands, give praise to the + divine clemency, which yet delays the chastisement of your sins. Why do ye + seek to affright us by vain and indirect menaces? Release the fugitive + Orchan, crown him sultan of Romania; call the Hungarians from beyond the + Danube; arm against us the nations of the West; and be assured, that you + will only provoke and precipitate your ruin." But if the fears of the + ambassadors were alarmed by the stern language of the vizier, they were + soothed by the courteous audience and friendly speeches of the Ottoman + prince; and Mahomet assured them that on his return to Adrianople he would + redress the grievances, and consult the true interests, of the Greeks. No + sooner had he repassed the Hellespont, than he issued a mandate to + suppress their pension, and to expel their officers from the banks of the + Strymon: in this measure he betrayed a hostile mind; and the second order + announced, and in some degree commenced, the siege of Constantinople. In + the narrow pass of the Bosphorus, an Asiatic fortress had formerly been + raised by his grandfather; in the opposite situation, on the European + side, he resolved to erect a more formidable castle; and a thousand masons + were commanded to assemble in the spring on a spot named Asomaton, about + five miles from the Greek metropolis. <a href="#linkJnote-12" + name="linkJnoteref-12" id="linkJnoteref-12">12</a> Persuasion is the + resource of the feeble; and the feeble can seldom persuade: the + ambassadors of the emperor attempted, without success, to divert Mahomet + from the execution of his design. They represented, that his grandfather + had solicited the permission of Manuel to build a castle on his own + territories; but that this double fortification, which would command the + strait, could only tend to violate the alliance of the nations; to + intercept the Latins who traded in the Black Sea, and perhaps to + annihilate the subsistence of the city. "I form no enterprise," replied + the perfidious sultan, "against the city; but the empire of Constantinople + is measured by her walls. Have you forgot the distress to which my father + was reduced when you formed a league with the Hungarians; when they + invaded our country by land, and the Hellespont was occupied by the French + galleys? Amurath was compelled to force the passage of the Bosphorus; and + your strength was not equal to your malevolence. I was then a child at + Adrianople; the Moslems trembled; and, for a while, the <i>Gabours</i> <a + href="#linkJnote-13" name="linkJnoteref-13" id="linkJnoteref-13">13</a> + insulted our disgrace. But when my father had triumphed in the field of + Warna, he vowed to erect a fort on the western shore, and that vow it is + my duty to accomplish. Have ye the right, have ye the power, to control my + actions on my own ground? For that ground is my own: as far as the shores + of the Bosphorus, Asia is inhabited by the Turks, and Europe is deserted + by the Romans. Return, and inform your king, that the present Ottoman is + far different from his predecessors; that <i>his</i> resolutions surpass + <i>their</i> wishes; and that <i>he</i> performs more <i>than</i> they + could resolve. Return in safety—but the next who delivers a similar + message may expect to be flayed alive." After this declaration, + Constantine, the first of the Greeks in spirit as in rank, <a + href="#linkJnote-14" name="linkJnoteref-14" id="linkJnoteref-14">14</a> + had determined to unsheathe the sword, and to resist the approach and + establishment of the Turks on the Bosphorus. He was disarmed by the advice + of his civil and ecclesiastical ministers, who recommended a system less + generous, and even less prudent, than his own, to approve their patience + and long-suffering, to brand the Ottoman with the name and guilt of an + aggressor, and to depend on chance and time for their own safety, and the + destruction of a fort which could not long be maintained in the + neighborhood of a great and populous city. Amidst hope and fear, the fears + of the wise, and the hopes of the credulous, the winter rolled away; the + proper business of each man, and each hour, was postponed; and the Greeks + shut their eyes against the impending danger, till the arrival of the + spring and the sultan decide the assurance of their ruin. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-11" id="linkJnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ Before I enter on the + siege of Constantinople, I shall observe, that except the short hints of + Cantemir and Leunclavius, I have not been able to obtain any Turkish + account of this conquest; such an account as we possess of the siege of + Rhodes by Soliman II., (Mémoires de l'Académie des Inscriptions, tom. + xxvi. p. 723—769.) I must therefore depend on the Greeks, whose + prejudices, in some degree, are subdued by their distress. Our standard + texts ar those of Ducas, (c. 34—42,) Phranza, (l. iii. c. 7—20,) + Chalcondyles, (l. viii. p. 201—214,) and Leonardus Chiensis, + (Historia C. P. a Turco expugnatæ. Norimberghæ, 1544, in 4to., 20 leaves.) + The last of these narratives is the earliest in date, since it was + composed in the Isle of Chios, the 16th of August, 1453, only seventy-nine + days after the loss of the city, and in the first confusion of ideas and + passions. Some hints may be added from an epistle of Cardinal Isidore (in + Farragine Rerum Turcicarum, ad calcem Chalcondyl. Clauseri, Basil, 1556) + to Pope Nicholas V., and a tract of Theodosius Zygomala, which he + addressed in the year 1581 to Martin Crucius, (Turco-Græcia, l. i. p. 74—98, + Basil, 1584.) The various facts and materials are briefly, though + critically, reviewed by Spondanus, (A.D. 1453, No. 1—27.) The + hearsay relations of Monstrelet and the distant Latins I shall take leave + to disregard. * Note: M. Von Hammer has added little new information on + the siege of Constantinople, and, by his general agreement, has borne an + honorable testimony to the truth, and by his close imitation to the + graphic spirit and boldness, of Gibbon.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-12" id="linkJnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ The situation of the + fortress, and the topography of the Bosphorus, are best learned from Peter + Gyllius, (de Bosphoro Thracio, l. ii. c. 13,) Leunclavius, (Pandect. p. + 445,) and Tournefort, (Voyage dans le Levant, tom. ii. lettre xv. p. 443, + 444;) but I must regret the map or plan which Tournefort sent to the + French minister of the marine. The reader may turn back to chap. xvii. of + this History.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-13" id="linkJnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ The opprobrious name + which the Turks bestow on the infidels, is expressed Kabour by Ducas, and + <i>Giaour</i> by Leunclavius and the moderns. The former term is derived + by Ducange (Gloss. Græc tom. i. p. 530) from Kabouron, in vulgar Greek, a + tortoise, as denoting a retrograde motion from the faith. But alas! <i>Gabour</i> + is no more than <i>Gheber</i>, which was transferred from the Persian to + the Turkish language, from the worshippers of fire to those of the + crucifix, (D'Herbelot, Bibliot. Orient. p. 375.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-14" id="linkJnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ Phranza does justice to + his master's sense and courage. Calliditatem hominis non ignorans + Imperator prior arma movere constituit, and stigmatizes the folly of the + cum sacri tum profani proceres, which he had heard, amentes spe vanâ + pasci. Ducas was not a privy-counsellor.] + </p> + <p> + Of a master who never forgives, the orders are seldom disobeyed. On the + twenty-sixth of March, the appointed spot of Asomaton was covered with an + active swarm of Turkish artificers; and the materials by sea and land were + diligently transported from Europe and Asia. <a href="#linkJnote-15" + name="linkJnoteref-15" id="linkJnoteref-15">15</a> The lime had been burnt + in Cataphrygia; the timber was cut down in the woods of Heraclea and + Nicomedia; and the stones were dug from the Anatolian quarries. Each of + the thousand masons was assisted by two workmen; and a measure of two + cubits was marked for their daily task. The fortress <a + href="#linkJnote-16" name="linkJnoteref-16" id="linkJnoteref-16">16</a> + was built in a triangular form; each angle was flanked by a strong and + massy tower; one on the declivity of the hill, two along the sea-shore: a + thickness of twenty-two feet was assigned for the walls, thirty for the + towers; and the whole building was covered with a solid platform of lead. + Mahomet himself pressed and directed the work with indefatigable ardor: + his three viziers claimed the honor of finishing their respective towers; + the zeal of the cadhis emulated that of the Janizaries; the meanest labor + was ennobled by the service of God and the sultan; and the diligence of + the multitude was quickened by the eye of a despot, whose smile was the + hope of fortune, and whose frown was the messenger of death. The Greek + emperor beheld with terror the irresistible progress of the work; and + vainly strove, by flattery and gifts, to assuage an implacable foe, who + sought, and secretly fomented, the slightest occasion of a quarrel. Such + occasions must soon and inevitably be found. The ruins of stately + churches, and even the marble columns which had been consecrated to Saint + Michael the archangel, were employed without scruple by the profane and + rapacious Moslems; and some Christians, who presumed to oppose the + removal, received from their hands the crown of martyrdom. Constantine had + solicited a Turkish guard to protect the fields and harvests of his + subjects: the guard was fixed; but their first order was to allow free + pasture to the mules and horses of the camp, and to defend their brethren + if they should be molested by the natives. The retinue of an Ottoman chief + had left their horses to pass the night among the ripe corn; the damage + was felt; the insult was resented; and several of both nations were slain + in a tumultuous conflict. Mahomet listened with joy to the complaint; and + a detachment was commanded to exterminate the guilty village: the guilty + had fled; but forty innocent and unsuspecting reapers were massacred by + the soldiers. Till this provocation, Constantinople had been opened to the + visits of commerce and curiosity: on the first alarm, the gates were shut; + but the emperor, still anxious for peace, released on the third day his + Turkish captives; <a href="#linkJnote-17" name="linkJnoteref-17" + id="linkJnoteref-17">17</a> and expressed, in a last message, the firm + resignation of a Christian and a soldier. "Since neither oaths, nor + treaty, nor submission, can secure peace, pursue," said he to Mahomet, + "your impious warfare. My trust is in God alone; if it should please him + to mollify your heart, I shall rejoice in the happy change; if he delivers + the city into your hands, I submit without a murmur to his holy will. But + until the Judge of the earth shall pronounce between us, it is my duty to + live and die in the defence of my people." The sultan's answer was hostile + and decisive: his fortifications were completed; and before his departure + for Adrianople, he stationed a vigilant Aga and four hundred Janizaries, + to levy a tribute on the ships of every nation that should pass within the + reach of their cannon. A Venetian vessel, refusing obedience to the new + lords of the Bosphorus, was sunk with a single bullet. <a + href="#linkJnote-171" name="linkJnoteref-171" id="linkJnoteref-171">171</a> + The master and thirty sailors escaped in the boat; but they were dragged + in chains to the <i>Porte</i>: the chief was impaled; his companions were + beheaded; and the historian Ducas <a href="#linkJnote-18" + name="linkJnoteref-18" id="linkJnoteref-18">18</a> beheld, at Demotica, + their bodies exposed to the wild beasts. The siege of Constantinople was + deferred till the ensuing spring; but an Ottoman army marched into the + Morea to divert the force of the brothers of Constantine. At this æra of + calamity, one of these princes, the despot Thomas, was blessed or + afflicted with the birth of a son; "the last heir," says the plaintive + Phranza, "of the last spark of the Roman empire." <a href="#linkJnote-19" + name="linkJnoteref-19" id="linkJnoteref-19">19</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-15" id="linkJnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ Instead of this clear + and consistent account, the Turkish Annals (Cantemir, p. 97) revived the + foolish tale of the ox's hide, and Dido's stratagem in the foundation of + Carthage. These annals (unless we are swayed by an anti-Christian + prejudice) are far less valuable than the Greek historians.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-16" id="linkJnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ In the dimensions of + this fortress, the old castle of Europe, Phranza does not exactly agree + with Chalcondyles, whose description has been verified on the spot by his + editor Leunclavius.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-17" id="linkJnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ Among these were some + pages of Mahomet, so conscious of his inexorable rigor, that they begged + to lose their heads in the city unless they could return before sunset.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-171" id="linkJnote-171"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 171 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-171">return</a>)<br /> [ This was from a model + cannon cast by Urban the Hungarian. See p. 291. Von Hammer. p. 510.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-18" id="linkJnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducas, c. 35. Phranza, + (l. iii. c. 3,) who had sailed in his vessel, commemorates the Venetian + pilot as a martyr.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-19" id="linkJnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ Auctum est Palæologorum + genus, et Imperii successor, parvæque Romanorum scintillæ hæres natus, + Andreas, &c., (Phranza, l. iii. c. 7.) The strong expression was + inspired by his feelings.] + </p> + <p> + The Greeks and the Turks passed an anxious and sleepless winter: the + former were kept awake by their fears, the latter by their hopes; both by + the preparations of defence and attack; and the two emperors, who had the + most to lose or to gain, were the most deeply affected by the national + sentiment. In Mahomet, that sentiment was inflamed by the ardor of his + youth and temper: he amused his leisure with building at Adrianople <a + href="#linkJnote-20" name="linkJnoteref-20" id="linkJnoteref-20">20</a> + the lofty palace of Jehan Numa, (the watchtower of the world;) but his + serious thoughts were irrevocably bent on the conquest of the city of + Cæsar. At the dead of night, about the second watch, he started from his + bed, and commanded the instant attendance of his prime vizier. The + message, the hour, the prince, and his own situation, alarmed the guilty + conscience of Calil Basha; who had possessed the confidence, and advised + the restoration, of Amurath. On the accession of the son, the vizier was + confirmed in his office and the appearances of favor; but the veteran + statesman was not insensible that he trod on a thin and slippery ice, + which might break under his footsteps, and plunge him in the abyss. His + friendship for the Christians, which might be innocent under the late + reign, had stigmatized him with the name of Gabour Ortachi, or + foster-brother of the infidels; <a href="#linkJnote-21" + name="linkJnoteref-21" id="linkJnoteref-21">21</a> and his avarice + entertained a venal and treasonable correspondence, which was detected and + punished after the conclusion of the war. On receiving the royal mandate, + he embraced, perhaps for the last time, his wife and children; filled a + cup with pieces of gold, hastened to the palace, adored the sultan, and + offered, according to the Oriental custom, the slight tribute of his duty + and gratitude. <a href="#linkJnote-22" name="linkJnoteref-22" + id="linkJnoteref-22">22</a> "It is not my wish," said Mahomet, "to resume + my gifts, but rather to heap and multiply them on thy head. In my turn, I + ask a present far more valuable and important;—Constantinople." As + soon as the vizier had recovered from his surprise, "The same God," said + he, "who has already given thee so large a portion of the Roman empire, + will not deny the remnant, and the capital. His providence, and thy power, + assure thy success; and myself, with the rest of thy faithful slaves, will + sacrifice our lives and fortunes."—"Lala," <a href="#linkJnote-23" + name="linkJnoteref-23" id="linkJnoteref-23">23</a> (or preceptor,) + continued the sultan, "do you see this pillow? All the night, in my + agitation, I have pulled it on one side and the other; I have risen from + my bed, again have I lain down; yet sleep has not visited these weary + eyes. Beware of the gold and silver of the Romans: in arms we are + superior; and with the aid of God, and the prayers of the prophet, we + shall speedily become masters of Constantinople." To sound the disposition + of his soldiers, he often wandered through the streets alone, and in + disguise; and it was fatal to discover the sultan, when he wished to + escape from the vulgar eye. His hours were spent in delineating the plan + of the hostile city; in debating with his generals and engineers, on what + spot he should erect his batteries; on which side he should assault the + walls; where he should spring his mines; to what place he should apply his + scaling-ladders: and the exercises of the day repeated and proved the + lucubrations of the night. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-20" id="linkJnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantemir, p. 97, 98. The + sultan was either doubtful of his conquest, or ignorant of the superior + merits of Constantinople. A city or a kingdom may sometimes be ruined by + the Imperial fortune of their sovereign.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-21" id="linkJnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ SuntrojoV, by the + president Cousin, is translated <i>père</i> nourricier, most correctly + indeed from the Latin version; but in his haste he has overlooked the + Jnote by which Ishmael Boillaud (ad Ducam, c. 35) acknowledges and + rectifies his own error.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-22" id="linkJnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ The Oriental custom of + never appearing without gifts before a sovereign or a superior is of high + antiquity, and seems analogous with the idea of sacrifice, still more + ancient and universal. See the examples of such Persian gifts, Ælian, + Hist. Var. l. i. c. 31, 32, 33.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-23" id="linkJnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ The <i>Lala</i> of the + Turks (Cantemir, p. 34) and the <i>Tata</i> of the Greeks (Ducas, c. 35) + are derived from the natural language of children; and it may be observed, + that all such primitive words which deJnote their parents, are the simple + repetition of one syllable, composed of a labial or a dental consonant and + an open vowel, (Des Brosses, Méchanisme des Langues, tom. i. p. 231—247.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJ2HCH0002" id="linkJ2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXVIII: Reign Of Mahomet The Second, Extinction Of Eastern Empire.—Part + II. + </h2> + <p> + Among the implements of destruction, he studied with peculiar care the + recent and tremendous discovery of the Latins; and his artillery surpassed + whatever had yet appeared in the world. A founder of cannon, a Dane <a + href="#linkJnote-231" name="linkJnoteref-231" id="linkJnoteref-231">231</a> + or Hungarian, who had been almost starved in the Greek service, deserted + to the Moslems, and was liberally entertained by the Turkish sultan. + Mahomet was satisfied with the answer to his first question, which he + eagerly pressed on the artist. "Am I able to cast a cannon capable of + throwing a ball or stone of sufficient size to batter the walls of + Constantinople? I am not ignorant of their strength; but were they more + solid than those of Babylon, I could oppose an engine of superior power: + the position and management of that engine must be left to your + engineers." On this assurance, a foundry was established at Adrianople: + the metal was prepared; and at the end of three months, Urban produced a + piece of brass ordnance of stupendous, and almost incredible magnitude; a + measure of twelve palms is assigned to the bore; and the stone bullet + weighed above six hundred pounds. <a href="#linkJnote-24" + name="linkJnoteref-24" id="linkJnoteref-24">24</a> <a href="#linkJnote-241" + name="linkJnoteref-241" id="linkJnoteref-241">241</a> A vacant place + before the new palace was chosen for the first experiment; but to prevent + the sudden and mischievous effects of astonishment and fear, a + proclamation was issued, that the cannon would be discharged the ensuing + day. The explosion was felt or heard in a circuit of a hundred furlongs: + the ball, by the force of gunpowder, was driven above a mile; and on the + spot where it fell, it buried itself a fathom deep in the ground. For the + conveyance of this destructive engine, a frame or carriage of thirty + wagons was linked together and drawn along by a team of sixty oxen: two + hundred men on both sides were stationed, to poise and support the rolling + weight; two hundred and fifty workmen marched before to smooth the way and + repair the bridges; and near two months were employed in a laborious + journey of one hundred and fifty miles. A lively philosopher <a + href="#linkJnote-25" name="linkJnoteref-25" id="linkJnoteref-25">25</a> + derides on this occasion the credulity of the Greeks, and observes, with + much reason, that we should always distrust the exaggerations of a + vanquished people. He calculates, that a ball, even of two hundred pounds, + would require a charge of one hundred and fifty pounds of powder; and that + the stroke would be feeble and impotent, since not a fifteenth part of the + mass could be inflamed at the same moment. A stranger as I am to the art + of destruction, I can discern that the modern improvements of artillery + prefer the number of pieces to the weight of metal; the quickness of the + fire to the sound, or even the consequence, of a single explosion. Yet I + dare not reject the positive and unanimous evidence of contemporary + writers; nor can it seem improbable, that the first artists, in their rude + and ambitious efforts, should have transgressed the standard of + moderation. A Turkish cannon, more enormous than that of Mahomet, still + guards the entrance of the Dardanelles; and if the use be inconvenient, it + has been found on a late trial that the effect was far from contemptible. + A stone bullet of <i>eleven</i> hundred pounds' weight was once discharged + with three hundred and thirty pounds of powder: at the distance of six + hundred yards it shivered into three rocky fragments; traversed the + strait; and leaving the waters in a foam, again rose and bounded against + the opposite hill. <a href="#linkJnote-26" name="linkJnoteref-26" + id="linkJnoteref-26">26</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-231" id="linkJnote-231"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 231 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-231">return</a>)<br /> [ Gibbon has written + Dane by mistake for Dace, or Dacian. Lax ti kinoV?. Chalcondyles, Von + Hammer, p. 510.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-24" id="linkJnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ The Attic talent weighed + about sixty minæ, or avoirdupois pounds (see Hooper on Ancient Weights, + Measures, &c.;) but among the modern Greeks, that classic appellation + was extended to a weight of one hundred, or one hundred and twenty-five + pounds, (Ducange, talanton.) Leonardus Chiensis measured the ball or stone + of the <i>second</i> cannon Lapidem, qui palmis undecim ex meis ambibat in + gyro.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-241" id="linkJnote-241"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 241 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-241">return</a>)<br /> [ 1200, according to + Leonardus Chiensis. Von Hammer states that he had himself seen the great + cannon of the Dardanelles, in which a tailor who had run away from his + creditors, had concealed himself several days Von Hammer had measured + balls twelve spans round. Note. p. 666.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-25" id="linkJnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ See Voltaire, (Hist. + Générale, c. xci. p. 294, 295.) He was ambitious of universal monarchy; + and the poet frequently aspires to the name and style of an astronomer, a + chemist, &c.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-26" id="linkJnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ The Baron de Tott, (tom. + iii. p. 85—89,) who fortified the Dardanelles against the Russians, + describes in a lively, and even comic, strain his own prowess, and the + consternation of the Turks. But that adventurous traveller does not + possess the art of gaining our confidence.] + </p> + <p> + While Mahomet threatened the capital of the East, the Greek emperor + implored with fervent prayers the assistance of earth and heaven. But the + invisible powers were deaf to his supplications; and Christendom beheld + with indifference the fall of Constantinople, while she derived at least + some promise of supply from the jealous and temporal policy of the sultan + of Egypt. Some states were too weak, and others too remote; by some the + danger was considered as imaginary by others as inevitable: the Western + princes were involved in their endless and domestic quarrels; and the + Roman pontiff was exasperated by the falsehood or obstinacy of the Greeks. + Instead of employing in their favor the arms and treasures of Italy, + Nicholas the Fifth had foretold their approaching ruin; and his honor was + engaged in the accomplishment of his prophecy. <a href="#linkJnote-261" + name="linkJnoteref-261" id="linkJnoteref-261">261</a> Perhaps he was + softened by the last extremity of their distress; but his compassion was + tardy; his efforts were faint and unavailing; and Constantinople had + fallen, before the squadrons of Genoa and Venice could sail from their + harbors. <a href="#linkJnote-27" name="linkJnoteref-27" + id="linkJnoteref-27">27</a> Even the princes of the Morea and of the Greek + islands affected a cold neutrality: the Genoese colony of Galata + negotiated a private treaty; and the sultan indulged them in the delusive + hope, that by his clemency they might survive the ruin of the empire. A + plebeian crowd, and some Byzantine nobles basely withdrew from the danger + of their country; and the avarice of the rich denied the emperor, and + reserved for the Turks, the secret treasures which might have raised in + their defence whole armies of mercenaries. <a href="#linkJnote-28" + name="linkJnoteref-28" id="linkJnoteref-28">28</a> The indigent and + solitary prince prepared, however, to sustain his formidable adversary; + but if his courage were equal to the peril, his strength was inadequate to + the contest. In the beginning of the spring, the Turkish vanguard swept + the towns and villages as far as the gates of Constantinople: submission + was spared and protected; whatever presumed to resist was exterminated + with fire and sword. The Greek places on the Black Sea, Mesembria, + Acheloum, and Bizon, surrendered on the first summons; Selybria alone + deserved the honors of a siege or blockade; and the bold inhabitants, + while they were invested by land, launched their boats, pillaged the + opposite coast of Cyzicus, and sold their captives in the public market. + But on the approach of Mahomet himself all was silent and prostrate: he + first halted at the distance of five miles; and from thence advancing in + battle array, planted before the gates of St. Romanus the Imperial + standard; and on the sixth day of April formed the memorable siege of + Constantinople. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-261" id="linkJnote-261"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 261 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-261">return</a>)<br /> [ See the curious + Christian and Mahometan predictions of the fall of Constantinople, Von + Hammer, p. 518.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-27" id="linkJnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ Non audivit, indignum + ducens, says the honest Antoninus; but as the Roman court was afterwards + grieved and ashamed, we find the more courtly expression of Platina, in + animo fuisse pontifici juvare Græcos, and the positive assertion of Æneas + Sylvius, structam classem &c. (Spond. A.D. 1453, No. 3.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-28" id="linkJnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ Antonin. in Proem.—Epist. + Cardinal. Isidor. apud Spondanum and Dr. Johnson, in the tragedy of Irene, + has happily seized this characteristic circumstance:— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + The groaning Greeks dig up the golden caverns. + The accumulated wealth of hoarding ages; + That wealth which, granted to their weeping prince, + Had ranged embattled nations at their gates. +</pre> + <p> + ] + </p> + <p> + The troops of Asia and Europe extended on the right and left from the + Propontis to the harbor; the Janizaries in the front were stationed before + the sultan's tent; the Ottoman line was covered by a deep intrenchment; + and a subordinate army enclosed the suburb of Galata, and watched the + doubtful faith of the Genoese. The inquisitive Philelphus, who resided in + Greece about thirty years before the siege, is confident, that all the + Turkish forces of any name or value could not exceed the number of sixty + thousand horse and twenty thousand foot; and he upbraids the pusillanimity + of the nations, who had tamely yielded to a handful of Barbarians. Such + indeed might be the regular establishment of the <i>Capiculi</i>, <a + href="#linkJnote-29" name="linkJnoteref-29" id="linkJnoteref-29">29</a> + the troops of the Porte who marched with the prince, and were paid from + his royal treasury. But the bashaws, in their respective governments, + maintained or levied a provincial militia; many lands were held by a + military tenure; many volunteers were attracted by the hope of spoil and + the sound of the holy trumpet invited a swarm of hungry and fearless + fanatics, who might contribute at least to multiply the terrors, and in a + first attack to blunt the swords, of the Christians. The whole mass of the + Turkish powers is magnified by Ducas, Chalcondyles, and Leonard of Chios, + to the amount of three or four hundred thousand men; but Phranza was a + less remote and more accurate judge; and his precise definition of two + hundred and fifty-eight thousand does not exceed the measure of experience + and probability. <a href="#linkJnote-30" name="linkJnoteref-30" + id="linkJnoteref-30">30</a> The navy of the besiegers was less formidable: + the Propontis was overspread with three hundred and twenty sail; but of + these no more than eighteen could be rated as galleys of war; and the far + greater part must be degraded to the condition of store-ships and + transports, which poured into the camp fresh supplies of men, ammunition, + and provisions. In her last decay, Constantinople was still peopled with + more than a hundred thousand inhabitants; but these numbers are found in + the accounts, not of war, but of captivity; and they mostly consisted of + mechanics, of priests, of women, and of men devoid of that spirit which + even women have sometimes exerted for the common safety. I can suppose, I + could almost excuse, the reluctance of subjects to serve on a distant + frontier, at the will of a tyrant; but the man who dares not expose his + life in the defence of his children and his property, has lost in society + the first and most active energies of nature. By the emperor's command, a + particular inquiry had been made through the streets and houses, how many + of the citizens, or even of the monks, were able and willing to bear arms + for their country. The lists were intrusted to Phranza; <a + href="#linkJnote-31" name="linkJnoteref-31" id="linkJnoteref-31">31</a> + and, after a diligent addition, he informed his master, with grief and + surprise, that the national defence was reduced to four thousand nine + hundred and seventy <i>Romans</i>. Between Constantine and his faithful + minister this comfortless secret was preserved; and a sufficient + proportion of shields, cross-bows, and muskets, were distributed from the + arsenal to the city bands. They derived some accession from a body of two + thousand strangers, under the command of John Justiniani, a noble Genoese; + a liberal donative was advanced to these auxiliaries; and a princely + recompense, the Isle of Lemnos, was promised to the valor and victory of + their chief. A strong chain was drawn across the mouth of the harbor: it + was supported by some Greek and Italian vessels of war and merchandise; + and the ships of every Christian nation, that successively arrived from + Candia and the Black Sea, were detained for the public service. Against + the powers of the Ottoman empire, a city of the extent of thirteen, + perhaps of sixteen, miles was defended by a scanty garrison of seven or + eight thousand soldiers. Europe and Asia were open to the besiegers; but + the strength and provisions of the Greeks must sustain a daily decrease; + nor could they indulge the expectation of any foreign succor or supply. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-29" id="linkJnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ The palatine troops are + styled <i>Capiculi</i>, the provincials, <i>Seratculi</i>; and most of the + names and institutions of the Turkish militia existed before the <i>Canon + Nameh</i> of Soliman II, from which, and his own experience, Count + Marsigli has composed his military state of the Ottoman empire.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-30" id="linkJnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ The observation of + Philelphus is approved by Cuspinian in the year 1508, (de Cæsaribus, in + Epilog. de Militiâ Turcicâ, p. 697.) Marsigli proves, that the effective + armies of the Turks are much less numerous than they appear. In the army + that besieged Constantinople Leonardus Chiensis reckons no more than + 15,000 Janizaries.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-31" id="linkJnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ Ego, eidem (Imp.) + tabellas extribui non absque dolore et mstitia, mansitque apud nos duos + aliis occultus numerus, (Phranza, l. iii. c. 8.) With some indulgence for + national prejudices, we cannot desire a more authentic witness, not only + of public facts, but of private counsels.] + </p> + <p> + The primitive Romans would have drawn their swords in the resolution of + death or conquest. The primitive Christians might have embraced each + other, and awaited in patience and charity the stroke of martyrdom. But + the Greeks of Constantinople were animated only by the spirit of religion, + and that spirit was productive only of animosity and discord. Before his + death, the emperor John Palæologus had renounced the unpopular measure of + a union with the Latins; nor was the idea revived, till the distress of + his brother Constantine imposed a last trial of flattery and + dissimulation. <a href="#linkJnote-32" name="linkJnoteref-32" + id="linkJnoteref-32">32</a> With the demand of temporal aid, his + ambassadors were instructed to mingle the assurance of spiritual + obedience: his neglect of the church was excused by the urgent cares of + the state; and his orthodox wishes solicited the presence of a Roman + legate. The Vatican had been too often deluded; yet the signs of + repentance could not decently be overlooked; a legate was more easily + granted than an army; and about six months before the final destruction, + the cardinal Isidore of Russia appeared in that character with a retinue + of priests and soldiers. The emperor saluted him as a friend and father; + respectfully listened to his public and private sermons; and with the most + obsequious of the clergy and laymen subscribed the act of union, as it had + been ratified in the council of Florence. On the twelfth of December, the + two nations, in the church of St. Sophia, joined in the communion of + sacrifice and prayer; and the names of the two pontiffs were solemnly + commemorated; the names of Nicholas the Fifth, the vicar of Christ, and of + the patriarch Gregory, who had been driven into exile by a rebellious + people. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-32" id="linkJnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ In Spondanus, the + narrative of the union is not only partial, but imperfect. The bishop of + Pamiers died in 1642, and the history of Ducas, which represents these + scenes (c. 36, 37) with such truth and spirit, was not printed till the + year 1649.] + </p> + <p> + But the dress and language of the Latin priest who officiated at the altar + were an object of scandal; and it was observed with horror, that he + consecrated a cake or wafer of <i>unleavened</i> bread, and poured cold + water into the cup of the sacrament. A national historian acknowledges + with a blush, that none of his countrymen, not the emperor himself, were + sincere in this occasional conformity. <a href="#linkJnote-33" + name="linkJnoteref-33" id="linkJnoteref-33">33</a> Their hasty and + unconditional submission was palliated by a promise of future revisal; but + the best, or the worst, of their excuses was the confession of their own + perjury. When they were pressed by the reproaches of their honest + brethren, "Have patience," they whispered, "have patience till God shall + have delivered the city from the great dragon who seeks to devour us. You + shall then perceive whether we are truly reconciled with the Azymites." + But patience is not the attribute of zeal; nor can the arts of a court be + adapted to the freedom and violence of popular enthusiasm. From the dome + of St. Sophia the inhabitants of either sex, and of every degree, rushed + in crowds to the cell of the monk Gennadius, <a href="#linkJnote-34" + name="linkJnoteref-34" id="linkJnoteref-34">34</a> to consult the oracle + of the church. The holy man was invisible; entranced, as it should seem, + in deep meditation, or divine rapture: but he had exposed on the door of + his cell a speaking tablet; and they successively withdrew, after reading + those tremendous words: "O miserable Romans, why will ye abandon the + truth? and why, instead of confiding in God, will ye put your trust in the + Italians? In losing your faith you will lose your city. Have mercy on me, + O Lord! I protest in thy presence that I am innocent of the crime. O + miserable Romans, consider, pause, and repent. At the same moment that you + renounce the religion of your fathers, by embracing impiety, you submit to + a foreign servitude." According to the advice of Gennadius, the religious + virgins, as pure as angels, and as proud as dæmons, rejected the act of + union, and abjured all communion with the present and future associates of + the Latins; and their example was applauded and imitated by the greatest + part of the clergy and people. From the monastery, the devout Greeks + dispersed themselves in the taverns; drank confusion to the slaves of the + pope; emptied their glasses in honor of the image of the holy Virgin; and + besought her to defend against Mahomet the city which she had formerly + saved from Chosroes and the Chagan. In the double intoxication of zeal and + wine, they valiantly exclaimed, "What occasion have we for succor, or + union, or Latins? Far from us be the worship of the Azymites!" During the + winter that preceded the Turkish conquest, the nation was distracted by + this epidemical frenzy; and the season of Lent, the approach of Easter, + instead of breathing charity and love, served only to fortify the + obstinacy and influence of the zealots. The confessors scrutinized and + alarmed the conscience of their votaries, and a rigorous penance was + imposed on those who had received the communion from a priest who had + given an express or tacit consent to the union. His service at the altar + propagated the infection to the mute and simple spectators of the + ceremony: they forfeited, by the impure spectacle, the virtue of the + sacerdotal character; nor was it lawful, even in danger of sudden death, + to invoke the assistance of their prayers or absolution. No sooner had the + church of St. Sophia been polluted by the Latin sacrifice, than it was + deserted as a Jewish synagogue, or a heathen temple, by the clergy and + people; and a vast and gloomy silence prevailed in that venerable dome, + which had so often smoked with a cloud of incense, blazed with innumerable + lights, and resounded with the voice of prayer and thanksgiving. The + Latins were the most odious of heretics and infidels; and the first + minister of the empire, the great duke, was heard to declare, that he had + rather behold in Constantinople the turban of Mahomet, than the pope's + tiara or a cardinal's hat. <a href="#linkJnote-35" name="linkJnoteref-35" + id="linkJnoteref-35">35</a> A sentiment so unworthy of Christians and + patriots was familiar and fatal to the Greeks: the emperor was deprived of + the affection and support of his subjects; and their native cowardice was + sanctified by resignation to the divine decree, or the visionary hope of a + miraculous deliverance. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-33" id="linkJnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ Phranza, one of the + conforming Greeks, acknowledges that the measure was adopted only propter + spem auxilii; he affirms with pleasure, that those who refused to perform + their devotions in St. Sophia, extra culpam et in pace essent, (l. iii. c. + 20.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-34" id="linkJnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ His primitive and + secular name was George Scholarius, which he changed for that of + Gennadius, either when he became a monk or a patriarch. His defence, at + Florence, of the same union, which he so furiously attacked at + Constantinople, has tempted Leo Allatius (Diatrib. de Georgiis, in Fabric. + Bibliot. Græc. tom. x. p. 760—786) to divide him into two men; but + Renaudot (p. 343—383) has restored the identity of his person and + the duplicity of his character.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-35" id="linkJnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ Fakiolion, kaluptra, may + be fairly translated a cardinal's hat. The difference of the Greek and + Latin habits imbittered the schism.] + </p> + <p> + Of the triangle which composes the figure of Constantinople, the two sides + along the sea were made inaccessible to an enemy; the Propontis by nature, + and the harbor by art. Between the two waters, the basis of the triangle, + the land side was protected by a double wall, and a deep ditch of the + depth of one hundred feet. Against this line of fortification, which + Phranza, an eye-witness, prolongs to the measure of six miles, <a + href="#linkJnote-36" name="linkJnoteref-36" id="linkJnoteref-36">36</a> + the Ottomans directed their principal attack; and the emperor, after + distributing the service and command of the most perilous stations, + undertook the defence of the external wall. In the first days of the siege + the Greek soldiers descended into the ditch, or sallied into the field; + but they soon discovered, that, in the proportion of their numbers, one + Christian was of more value than twenty Turks: and, after these bold + preludes, they were prudently content to maintain the rampart with their + missile weapons. Nor should this prudence be accused of pusillanimity. The + nation was indeed pusillanimous and base; but the last Constantine + deserves the name of a hero: his noble band of volunteers was inspired + with Roman virtue; and the foreign auxiliaries supported the honor of the + Western chivalry. The incessant volleys of lances and arrows were + accompanied with the smoke, the sound, and the fire, of their musketry and + cannon. Their small arms discharged at the same time either five, or even + ten, balls of lead, of the size of a walnut; and, according to the + closeness of the ranks and the force of the powder, several breastplates + and bodies were transpierced by the same shot. But the Turkish approaches + were soon sunk in trenches, or covered with ruins. Each day added to the + science of the Christians; but their inadequate stock of gunpowder was + wasted in the operations of each day. Their ordnance was not powerful, + either in size or number; and if they possessed some heavy cannon, they + feared to plant them on the walls, lest the aged structure should be + shaken and overthrown by the explosion. <a href="#linkJnote-37" + name="linkJnoteref-37" id="linkJnoteref-37">37</a> The same destructive + secret had been revealed to the Moslems; by whom it was employed with the + superior energy of zeal, riches, and despotism. The great cannon of + Mahomet has been separately noticed; an important and visible object in + the history of the times: but that enormous engine was flanked by two + fellows almost of equal magnitude: <a href="#linkJnote-38" + name="linkJnoteref-38" id="linkJnoteref-38">38</a> the long order of the + Turkish artillery was pointed against the walls; fourteen batteries + thundered at once on the most accessible places; and of one of these it is + ambiguously expressed, that it was mounted with one hundred and thirty + guns, or that it discharged one hundred and thirty bullets. Yet in the + power and activity of the sultan, we may discern the infancy of the new + science. Under a master who counted the moments, the great cannon could be + loaded and fired no more than seven times in one day. <a + href="#linkJnote-39" name="linkJnoteref-39" id="linkJnoteref-39">39</a> + The heated metal unfortunately burst; several workmen were destroyed; and + the skill of an artist <a href="#linkJnote-391" name="linkJnoteref-391" + id="linkJnoteref-391">391</a> was admired who bethought himself of + preventing the danger and the accident, by pouring oil, after each + explosion, into the mouth of the cannon. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-36" id="linkJnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ We are obliged to reduce + the Greek miles to the smallest measure which is preserved in the wersts + of Russia, of 547 French <i>toises</i>, and of 104 2/5 to a degree. The + six miles of Phranza do not exceed four English miles, (D'Anville, Mesures + Itineraires, p. 61, 123, &c.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-37" id="linkJnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ At indies doctiores + nostri facti paravere contra hostes machinamenta, quæ tamen avare + dabantur. Pulvis erat nitri modica exigua; tela modica; bombardæ, si + aderant incommoditate loci primum hostes offendere, maceriebus alveisque + tectos, non poterant. Nam si quæ magnæ erant, ne murus concuteretur + noster, quiescebant. This passage of Leonardus Chiensis is curious and + important.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-38" id="linkJnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ According to + Chalcondyles and Phranza, the great cannon burst; an incident which, + according to Ducas, was prevented by the artist's skill. It is evident + that they do not speak of the same gun. * Note: They speak, one of a + Byzantine, one of a Turkish, gun. Von Hammer Jnote, p. 669.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-39" id="linkJnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ Near a hundred years + after the siege of Constantinople, the French and English fleets in the + Channel were proud of firing 300 shot in an engagement of two hours, + (Mémoires de Martin du Bellay, l. x., in the Collection Générale, tom. + xxi. p. 239.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-391" id="linkJnote-391"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 391 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-391">return</a>)<br /> [ The founder of the + gun. Von Hammer, p. 526.] + </p> + <p> + The first random shots were productive of more sound than effect; and it + was by the advice of a Christian, that the engineers were taught to level + their aim against the two opposite sides of the salient angles of a + bastion. However imperfect, the weight and repetition of the fire made + some impression on the walls; and the Turks, pushing their approaches to + the edge of the ditch, attempted to fill the enormous chasm, and to build + a road to the assault. <a href="#linkJnote-40" name="linkJnoteref-40" + id="linkJnoteref-40">40</a> Innumerable fascines, and hogsheads, and + trunks of trees, were heaped on each other; and such was the impetuosity + of the throng, that the foremost and the weakest were pushed headlong down + the precipice, and instantly buried under the accumulated mass. To fill + the ditch was the toil of the besiegers; to clear away the rubbish was the + safety of the besieged; and after a long and bloody conflict, the web that + had been woven in the day was still unravelled in the night. The next + resource of Mahomet was the practice of mines; but the soil was rocky; in + every attempt he was stopped and undermined by the Christian engineers; + nor had the art been yet invented of replenishing those subterraneous + passages with gunpowder, and blowing whole towers and cities into the air. + <a href="#linkJnote-41" name="linkJnoteref-41" id="linkJnoteref-41">41</a> + A circumstance that distinguishes the siege of Constantinople is the + reunion of the ancient and modern artillery. The cannon were intermingled + with the mechanical engines for casting stones and darts; the bullet and + the battering-ram <a href="#linkJnote-411" name="linkJnoteref-411" + id="linkJnoteref-411">411</a> were directed against the same walls: nor + had the discovery of gunpowder superseded the use of the liquid and + unextinguishable fire. A wooden turret of the largest size was advanced on + rollers; this portable magazine of ammunition and fascines was protected by + a threefold covering of bulls' hides: incessant volleys were securely + discharged from the loop-holes; in the front, three doors were contrived + for the alternate sally and retreat of the soldiers and workmen. They + ascended by a staircase to the upper platform, and, as high as the level + of that platform, a scaling-ladder could be raised by pulleys to form a + bridge, and grapple with the adverse rampart. By these various arts of + annoyance, some as new as they were pernicious to the Greeks, the tower of + St. Romanus was at length overturned: after a severe struggle, the Turks + were repulsed from the breach, and interrupted by darkness; but they + trusted that with the return of light they should renew the attack with + fresh vigor and decisive success. Of this pause of action, this interval + of hope, each moment was improved, by the activity of the emperor and + Justiniani, who passed the night on the spot, and urged the labors which + involved the safety of the church and city. At the dawn of day, the + impatient sultan perceived, with astonishment and grief, that his wooden + turret had been reduced to ashes: the ditch was cleared and restored; and + the tower of St. Romanus was again strong and entire. He deplored the + failure of his design; and uttered a profane exclamation, that the word of + the thirty-seven thousand prophets should not have compelled him to + believe that such a work, in so short a time, could have been accomplished + by the infidels. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-40" id="linkJnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ I have selected some + curious facts, without striving to emulate the bloody and obstinate + eloquence of the abbé de Vertot, in his prolix descriptions of the sieges + of Rhodes, Malta, &c. But that agreeable historian had a turn for + romance; and as he wrote to please the order he had adopted the same + spirit of enthusiasm and chivalry.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-41" id="linkJnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ The first theory of + mines with gunpowder appears in 1480 in a MS. of George of Sienna, + (Tiraboschi, tom. vi. P. i. p. 324.) They were first practised by + Sarzanella, in 1487; but the honor and improvement in 1503 is ascribed to + Peter of Navarre, who used them with success in the wars of Italy, (Hist. + de la Ligue de Cambray, tom. ii. p. 93—97.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-411" id="linkJnote-411"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 411 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-411">return</a>)<br /> [ The battering-ram + according to Von Hammer, (p. 670,) was not used.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJ2HCH0003" id="linkJ2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXVIII: Reign Of Mahomet The Second, Extinction Of Eastern Empire.—Part + III. + </h2> + <p> + The generosity of the Christian princes was cold and tardy; but in the + first apprehension of a siege, Constantine had negotiated, in the isles of + the Archipelago, the Morea, and Sicily, the most indispensable supplies. + As early as the beginning of April, five <a href="#linkJnote-42" + name="linkJnoteref-42" id="linkJnoteref-42">42</a> great ships, equipped + for merchandise and war, would have sailed from the harbor of Chios, had + not the wind blown obstinately from the north. <a href="#linkJnote-43" + name="linkJnoteref-43" id="linkJnoteref-43">43</a> One of these ships bore + the Imperial flag; the remaining four belonged to the Genoese; and they + were laden with wheat and barley, with wine, oil, and vegetables, and, + above all, with soldiers and mariners for the service of the capital. + After a tedious delay, a gentle breeze, and, on the second day, a strong + gale from the south, carried them through the Hellespont and the + Propontis: but the city was already invested by sea and land; and the + Turkish fleet, at the entrance of the Bosphorus, was stretched from shore + to shore, in the form of a crescent, to intercept, or at least to repel, + these bold auxiliaries. The reader who has present to his mind the + geographical picture of Constantinople, will conceive and admire the + greatness of the spectacle. The five Christian ships continued to advance + with joyful shouts, and a full press both of sails and oars, against a + hostile fleet of three hundred vessels; and the rampart, the camp, the + coasts of Europe and Asia, were lined with innumerable spectators, who + anxiously awaited the event of this momentous succor. At the first view + that event could not appear doubtful; the superiority of the Moslems was + beyond all measure or account: and, in a calm, their numbers and valor + must inevitably have prevailed. But their hasty and imperfect navy had + been created, not by the genius of the people, but by the will of the + sultan: in the height of their prosperity, the Turks have acknowledged, + that if God had given them the earth, he had left the sea to the infidels; + <a href="#linkJnote-44" name="linkJnoteref-44" id="linkJnoteref-44">44</a> + and a series of defeats, a rapid progress of decay, has established the + truth of their modest confession. Except eighteen galleys of some force, + the rest of their fleet consisted of open boats, rudely constructed and + awkwardly managed, crowded with troops, and destitute of cannon; and since + courage arises in a great measure from the consciousness of strength, the + bravest of the Janizaries might tremble on a new element. In the Christian + squadron, five stout and lofty ships were guided by skilful pilots, and + manned with the veterans of Italy and Greece, long practised in the arts + and perils of the sea. Their weight was directed to sink or scatter the + weak obstacles that impeded their passage: their artillery swept the + waters: their liquid fire was poured on the heads of the adversaries, who, + with the design of boarding, presumed to approach them; and the winds and + waves are always on the side of the ablest navigators. In this conflict, + the Imperial vessel, which had been almost overpowered, was rescued by the + Genoese; but the Turks, in a distant and closer attack, were twice + repulsed with considerable loss. Mahomet himself sat on horseback on the + beach to encourage their valor by his voice and presence, by the promise + of reward, and by fear more potent than the fear of the enemy. The + passions of his soul, and even the gestures of his body, <a + href="#linkJnote-45" name="linkJnoteref-45" id="linkJnoteref-45">45</a> + seemed to imitate the actions of the combatants; and, as if he had been + the lord of nature, he spurred his horse with a fearless and impotent + effort into the sea. His loud reproaches, and the clamors of the camp, + urged the Ottomans to a third attack, more fatal and bloody than the two + former; and I must repeat, though I cannot credit, the evidence of + Phranza, who affirms, from their own mouth, that they lost above twelve + thousand men in the slaughter of the day. They fled in disorder to the + shores of Europe and Asia, while the Christian squadron, triumphant and + unhurt, steered along the Bosphorus, and securely anchored within the + chain of the harbor. In the confidence of victory, they boasted that the + whole Turkish power must have yielded to their arms; but the admiral, or + captain bashaw, found some consolation for a painful wound in his eye, by + representing that accident as the cause of his defeat. Balthi Ogli was a + renegade of the race of the Bulgarian princes: his military character was + tainted with the unpopular vice of avarice; and under the despotism of the + prince or people, misfortune is a sufficient evidence of guilt. <a + href="#linkJnote-451" name="linkJnoteref-451" id="linkJnoteref-451">451</a> + His rank and services were annihilated by the displeasure of Mahomet. In + the royal presence, the captain bashaw was extended on the ground by four + slaves, and received one hundred strokes with a golden rod: <a + href="#linkJnote-46" name="linkJnoteref-46" id="linkJnoteref-46">46</a> + his death had been pronounced; and he adored the clemency of the sultan, + who was satisfied with the milder punishment of confiscation and exile. + The introduction of this supply revived the hopes of the Greeks, and + accused the supineness of their Western allies. Amidst the deserts of + Anatolia and the rocks of Palestine, the millions of the crusades had + buried themselves in a voluntary and inevitable grave; but the situation + of the Imperial city was strong against her enemies, and accessible to her + friends; and a rational and moderate armament of the marine states might + have saved the relics of the Roman name, and maintained a Christian + fortress in the heart of the Ottoman empire. Yet this was the sole and + feeble attempt for the deliverance of Constantinople: the more distant + powers were insensible of its danger; and the ambassador of Hungary, or at + least of Huniades, resided in the Turkish camp, to remove the fears, and + to direct the operations, of the sultan. <a href="#linkJnote-47" + name="linkJnoteref-47" id="linkJnoteref-47">47</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-42" id="linkJnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ It is singular that the + Greeks should not agree in the number of these illustrious vessels; the <i>five</i> + of Ducas, the <i>four</i>of Phranza and Leonardus, and the <i>two</i> of + Chalcondyles, must be extended to the smaller, or confined to the larger, + size. Voltaire, in giving one of these ships to Frederic III., confounds + the emperors of the East and West.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-43" id="linkJnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ In bold defiance, or + rather in gross ignorance, of language and geography, the president Cousin + detains them in Chios with a south, and wafts them to Constantinople with + a north, wind.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-44" id="linkJnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ The perpetual decay and + weakness of the Turkish navy may be observed in Ricaut, (State of the + Ottoman Empire, p. 372—378,) Thevenot, (Voyages, P. i. p. 229—242, + and Tott), (Mémoires, tom. iii;) the last of whom is always solicitous to + amuse and amaze his reader.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-45" id="linkJnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ I must confess that I + have before my eyes the living picture which Thucydides (l. vii. c. 71) + has drawn of the passions and gestures of the Athenians in a naval + engagement in the great harbor of Syracuse.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-451" id="linkJnote-451"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 451 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-451">return</a>)<br /> [ According to Ducas, + one of the Afabi beat out his eye with a stone Compare Von Hammer.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-46" id="linkJnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ According to the + exaggeration or corrupt text of Ducas, (c. 38,) this golden bar was of the + enormous or incredible weight of 500 libræ, or pounds. Bouillaud's reading + of 500 drachms, or five pounds, is sufficient to exercise the arm of + Mahomet, and bruise the back of his admiral.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-47" id="linkJnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducas, who confesses + himself ill informed of the affairs of Hungary assigns a motive of + superstition, a fatal belief that Constantinople would be the term of the + Turkish conquests. See Phranza (l. iii. c. 20) and Spondanus.] + </p> + <p> + It was difficult for the Greeks to penetrate the secret of the divan; yet + the Greeks are persuaded, that a resistance so obstinate and surprising, + had fatigued the perseverance of Mahomet. He began to meditate a retreat; + and the siege would have been speedily raised, if the ambition and + jealousy of the second vizier had not opposed the perfidious advice of + Calil Bashaw, who still maintained a secret correspondence with the + Byzantine court. The reduction of the city appeared to be hopeless, unless + a double attack could be made from the harbor as well as from the land; + but the harbor was inaccessible: an impenetrable chain was now defended by + eight large ships, more than twenty of a smaller size, with several + galleys and sloops; and, instead of forcing this barrier, the Turks might + apprehend a naval sally, and a second encounter in the open sea. In this + perplexity, the genius of Mahomet conceived and executed a plan of a bold + and marvellous cast, of transporting by land his lighter vessels and + military stores from the Bosphorus into the higher part of the harbor. The + distance is about ten <a href="#linkJnote-471" name="linkJnoteref-471" + id="linkJnoteref-471">471</a> miles; the ground is uneven, and was + overspread with thickets; and, as the road must be opened behind the + suburb of Galata, their free passage or total destruction must depend on + the option of the Genoese. But these selfish merchants were ambitious of + the favor of being the last devoured; and the deficiency of art was + supplied by the strength of obedient myriads. A level way was covered with + a broad platform of strong and solid planks; and to render them more + slippery and smooth, they were anointed with the fat of sheep and oxen. + Fourscore light galleys and brigantines, of fifty and thirty oars, were + disembarked on the Bosphorus shore; arranged successively on rollers; and + drawn forwards by the power of men and pulleys. Two guides or pilots were + stationed at the helm, and the prow, of each vessel: the sails were + unfurled to the winds; and the labor was cheered by song and acclamation. + In the course of a single night, this Turkish fleet painfully climbed the + hill, steered over the plain, and was launched from the declivity into the + shallow waters of the harbor, far above the molestation of the deeper + vessels of the Greeks. The real importance of this operation was magnified + by the consternation and confidence which it inspired: but the notorious, + unquestionable fact was displayed before the eyes, and is recorded by the + pens, of the two nations. <a href="#linkJnote-48" name="linkJnoteref-48" + id="linkJnoteref-48">48</a> A similar stratagem had been repeatedly + practised by the ancients; <a href="#linkJnote-49" name="linkJnoteref-49" + id="linkJnoteref-49">49</a> the Ottoman galleys (I must again repeat) + should be considered as large boats; and, if we compare the magnitude and + the distance, the obstacles and the means, the boasted miracle <a + href="#linkJnote-50" name="linkJnoteref-50" id="linkJnoteref-50">50</a> + has perhaps been equalled by the industry of our own times. <a + href="#linkJnote-51" name="linkJnoteref-51" id="linkJnoteref-51">51</a> As + soon as Mahomet had occupied the upper harbor with a fleet and army, he + constructed, in the narrowest part, a bridge, or rather mole, of fifty + cubits in breadth, and one hundred in length: it was formed of casks and + hogsheads; joined with rafters, linked with iron, and covered with a solid + floor. On this floating battery he planted one of his largest cannon, + while the fourscore galleys, with troops and scaling ladders, approached + the most accessible side, which had formerly been stormed by the Latin + conquerors. The indolence of the Christians has been accused for not + destroying these unfinished works; <a href="#linkJnote-511" + name="linkJnoteref-511" id="linkJnoteref-511">511</a> but their fire, by a + superior fire, was controlled and silenced; nor were they wanting in a + nocturnal attempt to burn the vessels as well as the bridge of the sultan. + His vigilance prevented their approach; their foremost galiots were sunk + or taken; forty youths, the bravest of Italy and Greece, were inhumanly + massacred at his command; nor could the emperor's grief be assuaged by the + just though cruel retaliation, of exposing from the walls the heads of two + hundred and sixty Mussulman captives. After a siege of forty days, the + fate of Constantinople could no longer be averted. The diminutive garrison + was exhausted by a double attack: the fortifications, which had stood for + ages against hostile violence, were dismantled on all sides by the Ottoman + cannon: many breaches were opened; and near the gate of St. Romanus, four + towers had been levelled with the ground. For the payment of his feeble + and mutinous troops, Constantine was compelled to despoil the churches + with the promise of a fourfold restitution; and his sacrilege offered a + new reproach to the enemies of the union. A spirit of discord impaired the + remnant of the Christian strength; the Genoese and Venetian auxiliaries + asserted the preeminence of their respective service; and Justiniani and + the great duke, whose ambition was not extinguished by the common danger, + accused each other of treachery and cowardice. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-471" id="linkJnote-471"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 471 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-471">return</a>)<br /> [ Six miles. Von Hammer.—M.]? + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-48" id="linkJnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ The unanimous testimony + of the four Greeks is confirmed by Cantemir (p. 96) from the Turkish + annals; but I could wish to contract the distance of <i>ten</i> * miles, + and to prolong the term of <i>one</i> night. Note: Six miles. Von Hammer.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-49" id="linkJnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ Phranza relates two + examples of a similar transportation over the six miles of the Isthmus of + Corinth; the one fabulous, of Augustus after the battle of Actium; the + other true, of Nicetas, a Greek general in the xth century. To these he + might have added a bold enterprise of Hannibal, to introduce his vessels + into the harbor of Tarentum, (Polybius, l. viii. p. 749, edit. Gronov. * + Note: Von Hammer gives a longer list of such transportations, p. 533. Dion + Cassius distinctly relates the occurrence treated as fabulous by Gibbon.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-50" id="linkJnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ A Greek of Candia, who + had served the Venetians in a similar undertaking, (Spond. A.D. 1438, No. + 37,) might possibly be the adviser and agent of Mahomet.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-51" id="linkJnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ I particularly allude to + our own embarkations on the lakes of Canada in the years 1776 and 1777, so + great in the labor, so fruitless in the event.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-511" id="linkJnote-511"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 511 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-511">return</a>)<br /> [ They were betrayed, + according to some accounts, by the Genoese of Galata. Von Hammer, p. 536.—M.] + </p> + <p> + During the siege of Constantinople, the words of peace and capitulation + had been sometimes pronounced; and several embassies had passed between + the camp and the city. <a href="#linkJnote-52" name="linkJnoteref-52" + id="linkJnoteref-52">52</a> The Greek emperor was humbled by adversity; + and would have yielded to any terms compatible with religion and royalty. + The Turkish sultan was desirous of sparing the blood of his soldiers; + still more desirous of securing for his own use the Byzantine treasures: + and he accomplished a sacred duty in presenting to the <i>Gabours</i> the + choice of circumcision, of tribute, or of death. The avarice of Mahomet + might have been satisfied with an annual sum of one hundred thousand + ducats; but his ambition grasped the capital of the East: to the prince he + offered a rich equivalent, to the people a free toleration, or a safe + departure: but after some fruitless treaty, he declared his resolution of + finding either a throne, or a grave, under the walls of Constantinople. A + sense of honor, and the fear of universal reproach, forbade Palæologus to + resign the city into the hands of the Ottomans; and he determined to abide + the last extremities of war. Several days were employed by the sultan in + the preparations of the assault; and a respite was granted by his favorite + science of astrology, which had fixed on the twenty-ninth of May, as the + fortunate and fatal hour. On the evening of the twenty-seventh, he issued + his final orders; assembled in his presence the military chiefs, and + dispersed his heralds through the camp to proclaim the duty, and the + motives, of the perilous enterprise. Fear is the first principle of a + despotic government; and his menaces were expressed in the Oriental style, + that the fugitives and deserters, had they the wings of a bird, <a + href="#linkJnote-53" name="linkJnoteref-53" id="linkJnoteref-53">53</a> + should not escape from his inexorable justice. The greatest part of his + bashaws and Janizaries were the offspring of Christian parents: but the + glories of the Turkish name were perpetuated by successive adoption; and + in the gradual change of individuals, the spirit of a legion, a regiment, + or an <i>oda</i>, is kept alive by imitation and discipline. In this holy + warfare, the Moslems were exhorted to purify their minds with prayer, + their bodies with seven ablutions; and to abstain from food till the close + of the ensuing day. A crowd of dervises visited the tents, to instil the + desire of martyrdom, and the assurance of spending an immortal youth + amidst the rivers and gardens of paradise, and in the embraces of the + black-eyed virgins. Yet Mahomet principally trusted to the efficacy of + temporal and visible rewards. A double pay was promised to the victorious + troops: "The city and the buildings," said Mahomet, "are mine; but I + resign to your valor the captives and the spoil, the treasures of gold and + beauty; be rich and be happy. Many are the provinces of my empire: the + intrepid soldier who first ascends the walls of Constantinople shall be + rewarded with the government of the fairest and most wealthy; and my + gratitude shall accumulate his honors and fortunes above the measure of + his own hopes." Such various and potent motives diffused among the Turks a + general ardor, regardless of life and impatient for action: the camp + reechoed with the Moslem shouts of "God is God: there is but one God, and + Mahomet is the apostle of God;" <a href="#linkJnote-54" + name="linkJnoteref-54" id="linkJnoteref-54">54</a> and the sea and land, + from Galata to the seven towers, were illuminated by the blaze of their + nocturnal fires. <a href="#linkJnote-541" name="linkJnoteref-541" + id="linkJnoteref-541">541</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-52" id="linkJnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ Chalcondyles and Ducas + differ in the time and circumstances of the negotiation; and as it was + neither glorious nor salutary, the faithful Phranza spares his prince even + the thought of a surrender.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-53" id="linkJnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ These wings + (Chalcondyles, l. viii. p. 208) are no more than an Oriental figure: but + in the tragedy of Irene, Mahomet's passion soars above sense and reason:— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Should the fierce North, upon his frozen wings. + Bear him aloft above the wondering clouds, + And seat him in the Pleiads' golden chariot— + Then should my fury drag him down to tortures. +</pre> + <p class="foot"> + Besides the extravagance of the rant, I must observe, 1. That the + operation of the winds must be confined to the <i>lower</i> region of the + air. 2. That the name, etymology, and fable of the Pleiads are purely + Greek, (Scholiast ad Homer, S. 686. Eudocia in Ioniâ, p. 399. Apollodor. + l. iii. c. 10. Heyne, p. 229, Not. 682,) and had no affinity with the + astronomy of the East, (Hyde ad Ulugbeg, Tabul. in Syntagma Dissert. tom. + i. p. 40, 42. Goguet, Origine des Arts, &c., tom. vi. p. 73—78. + Gebelin, Hist. du Calendrier, p. 73,) which Mahomet had studied. 3. The + golden chariot does not exist either in science or fiction; but I much + fear Dr. Johnson has confounded the Pleiads with the great bear or wagon, + the zodiac with a northern constellation:— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + ''Ark-on q' hn kai amaxan epiklhsin kaleouein. Il. S. 487.] +</pre> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-54" id="linkJnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ Phranza quarrels with + these Moslem acclamations, not for the name of God, but for that of the + prophet: the pious zeal of Voltaire is excessive, and even ridiculous.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-541" id="linkJnote-541"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 541 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-541">return</a>)<br /> [ The picture is + heightened by the addition of the wailing cries of Kyris, which were heard + from the dark interior of the city. Von Hammer p. 539.—M.] + </p> + <p> + Far different was the state of the Christians; who, with loud and impotent + complaints, deplored the guilt, or the punishment, of their sins. The + celestial image of the Virgin had been exposed in solemn procession; but + their divine patroness was deaf to their entreaties: they accused the + obstinacy of the emperor for refusing a timely surrender; anticipated the + horrors of their fate; and sighed for the repose and security of Turkish + servitude. The noblest of the Greeks, and the bravest of the allies, were + summoned to the palace, to prepare them, on the evening of the + twenty-eighth, for the duties and dangers of the general assault. The last + speech of Palæologus was the funeral oration of the Roman empire: <a + href="#linkJnote-55" name="linkJnoteref-55" id="linkJnoteref-55">55</a> he + promised, he conjured, and he vainly attempted to infuse the hope which + was extinguished in his own mind. In this world all was comfortless and + gloomy; and neither the gospel nor the church have proposed any + conspicuous recompense to the heroes who fall in the service of their + country. But the example of their prince, and the confinement of a siege, + had armed these warriors with the courage of despair, and the pathetic + scene is described by the feelings of the historian Phranza, who was + himself present at this mournful assembly. They wept, they embraced; + regardless of their families and fortunes, they devoted their lives; and + each commander, departing to his station, maintained all night a vigilant + and anxious watch on the rampart. The emperor, and some faithful + companions, entered the dome of St. Sophia, which in a few hours was to be + converted into a mosque; and devoutly received, with tears and prayers, + the sacrament of the holy communion. He reposed some moments in the + palace, which resounded with cries and lamentations; solicited the pardon + of all whom he might have injured; <a href="#linkJnote-56" + name="linkJnoteref-56" id="linkJnoteref-56">56</a> and mounted on + horseback to visit the guards, and explore the motions of the enemy. The + distress and fall of the last Constantine are more glorious than the long + prosperity of the Byzantine Cæsars. <a href="#linkJnote-561" + name="linkJnoteref-561" id="linkJnoteref-561">561</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-55" id="linkJnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ I am afraid that this + discourse was composed by Phranza himself; and it smells so grossly of the + sermon and the convent, that I almost doubt whether it was pronounced by + Constantine. Leonardus assigns him another speech, in which he addresses + himself more respectfully to the Latin auxiliaries.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-56" id="linkJnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ This abasement, which + devotion has sometimes extorted from dying princes, is an improvement of + the gospel doctrine of the forgiveness of injuries: it is more easy to + forgive 490 times, than once to ask pardon of an inferior.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-561" id="linkJnote-561"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 561 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-561">return</a>)<br /> [ Compare the very + curious Armenian elegy on the fall of Constantinople, translated by M. + Boré, in the Journal Asiatique for March, 1835; and by M. Brosset, in the + new edition of Le Beau, (tom. xxi. p. 308.) The author thus ends his poem: + "I, Abraham, loaded with sins, have composed this elegy with the most + lively sorrow; for I have seen Constantinople in the days of its glory."—M.] + </p> + <p> + In the confusion of darkness, an assailant may sometimes succeed; but in + this great and general attack, the military judgment and astrological + knowledge of Mahomet advised him to expect the morning, the memorable + twenty-ninth of May, in the fourteen hundred and fifty-third year of the + Christian æra. The preceding night had been strenuously employed: the + troops, the cannons, and the fascines, were advanced to the edge of the + ditch, which in many parts presented a smooth and level passage to the + breach; and his fourscore galleys almost touched, with the prows and their + scaling-ladders, the less defensible walls of the harbor. Under pain of + death, silence was enjoined: but the physical laws of motion and sound are + not obedient to discipline or fear; each individual might suppress his + voice and measure his footsteps; but the march and labor of thousands must + inevitably produce a strange confusion of dissonant clamors, which reached + the ears of the watchmen of the towers. At daybreak, without the customary + signal of the morning gun, the Turks assaulted the city by sea and land; + and the similitude of a twined or twisted thread has been applied to the + closeness and continuity of their line of attack. <a href="#linkJnote-57" + name="linkJnoteref-57" id="linkJnoteref-57">57</a> The foremost ranks + consisted of the refuse of the host, a voluntary crowd who fought without + order or command; of the feebleness of age or childhood, of peasants and + vagrants, and of all who had joined the camp in the blind hope of plunder + and martyrdom. The common impulse drove them onwards to the wall; the most + audacious to climb were instantly precipitated; and not a dart, not a + bullet, of the Christians, was idly wasted on the accumulated throng. But + their strength and ammunition were exhausted in this laborious defence: + the ditch was filled with the bodies of the slain; they supported the + footsteps of their companions; and of this devoted vanguard the death was + more serviceable than the life. Under their respective bashaws and + sanjaks, the troops of Anatolia and Romania were successively led to the + charge: their progress was various and doubtful; but, after a conflict of + two hours, the Greeks still maintained, and improved their advantage; and + the voice of the emperor was heard, encouraging his soldiers to achieve, + by a last effort, the deliverance of their country. In that fatal moment, + the Janizaries arose, fresh, vigorous, and invincible. The sultan himself + on horseback, with an iron mace in his hand, was the spectator and judge + of their valor: he was surrounded by ten thousand of his domestic troops, + whom he reserved for the decisive occasion; and the tide of battle was + directed and impelled by his voice and eye. His numerous ministers of + justice were posted behind the line, to urge, to restrain, and to punish; + and if danger was in the front, shame and inevitable death were in the + rear, of the fugitives. The cries of fear and of pain were drowned in the + martial music of drums, trumpets, and attaballs; and experience has + proved, that the mechanical operation of sounds, by quickening the + circulation of the blood and spirits, will act on the human machine more + forcibly than the eloquence of reason and honor. From the lines, the + galleys, and the bridge, the Ottoman artillery thundered on all sides; and + the camp and city, the Greeks and the Turks, were involved in a cloud of + smoke which could only be dispelled by the final deliverance or + destruction of the Roman empire. The single combats of the heroes of + history or fable amuse our fancy and engage our affections: the skilful + evolutions of war may inform the mind, and improve a necessary, though + pernicious, science. But in the uniform and odious pictures of a general + assault, all is blood, and horror, and confusion; nor shall I strive, at + the distance of three centuries, and a thousand miles, to delineate a + scene of which there could be no spectators, and of which the actors + themselves were incapable of forming any just or adequate idea. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-57" id="linkJnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ Besides the 10,000 + guards, and the sailors and the marines, Ducas numbers in this general + assault 250,000 Turks, both horse and foot.] + </p> + <p> + The immediate loss of Constantinople may be ascribed to the bullet, or + arrow, which pierced the gauntlet of John Justiniani. The sight of his + blood, and the exquisite pain, appalled the courage of the chief, whose + arms and counsels were the firmest rampart of the city. As he withdrew + from his station in quest of a surgeon, his flight was perceived and + stopped by the indefatigable emperor. "Your wound," exclaimed Palæologus, + "is slight; the danger is pressing: your presence is necessary; and + whither will you retire?"—"I will retire," said the trembling + Genoese, "by the same road which God has opened to the Turks;" and at + these words he hastily passed through one of the breaches of the inner + wall. By this pusillanimous act he stained the honors of a military life; + and the few days which he survived in Galata, or the Isle of Chios, were + embittered by his own and the public reproach. <a href="#linkJnote-58" + name="linkJnoteref-58" id="linkJnoteref-58">58</a> His example was + imitated by the greatest part of the Latin auxiliaries, and the defence + began to slacken when the attack was pressed with redoubled vigor. The + number of the Ottomans was fifty, perhaps a hundred, times superior to + that of the Christians; the double walls were reduced by the cannon to a + heap of ruins: in a circuit of several miles, some places must be found + more easy of access, or more feebly guarded; and if the besiegers could + penetrate in a single point, the whole city was irrecoverably lost. The + first who deserved the sultan's reward was Hassan the Janizary, of + gigantic stature and strength. With his cimeter in one hand and his + buckler in the other, he ascended the outward fortification: of the thirty + Janizaries, who were emulous of his valor, eighteen perished in the bold + adventure. Hassan and his twelve companions had reached the summit: the + giant was precipitated from the rampart: he rose on one knee, and was + again oppressed by a shower of darts and stones. But his success had + proved that the achievement was possible: the walls and towers were + instantly covered with a swarm of Turks; and the Greeks, now driven from + the vantage ground, were overwhelmed by increasing multitudes. Amidst + these multitudes, the emperor, <a href="#linkJnote-59" + name="linkJnoteref-59" id="linkJnoteref-59">59</a> who accomplished all + the duties of a general and a soldier, was long seen and finally lost. The + nobles, who fought round his person, sustained, till their last breath, + the honorable names of Palæologus and Cantacuzene: his mournful + exclamation was heard, "Cannot there be found a Christian to cut off my + head?" <a href="#linkJnote-60" name="linkJnoteref-60" id="linkJnoteref-60">60</a> + and his last fear was that of falling alive into the hands of the + infidels. <a href="#linkJnote-61" name="linkJnoteref-61" + id="linkJnoteref-61">61</a> The prudent despair of Constantine cast away + the purple: amidst the tumult he fell by an unknown hand, and his body was + buried under a mountain of the slain. After his death, resistance and + order were no more: the Greeks fled towards the city; and many were + pressed and stifled in the narrow pass of the gate of St. Romanus. The + victorious Turks rushed through the breaches of the inner wall; and as + they advanced into the streets, they were soon joined by their brethren, + who had forced the gate Phenar on the side of the harbor. <a + href="#linkJnote-62" name="linkJnoteref-62" id="linkJnoteref-62">62</a> In + the first heat of the pursuit, about two thousand Christians were put to + the sword; but avarice soon prevailed over cruelty; and the victors + acknowledged, that they should immediately have given quarter if the valor + of the emperor and his chosen bands had not prepared them for a similar + opposition in every part of the capital. It was thus, after a siege of + fifty-three days, that Constantinople, which had defied the power of + Chosroes, the Chagan, and the caliphs, was irretrievably subdued by the + arms of Mahomet the Second. Her empire only had been subverted by the + Latins: her religion was trampled in the dust by the Moslem conquerors. <a + href="#linkJnote-63" name="linkJnoteref-63" id="linkJnoteref-63">63</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-58" id="linkJnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ In the severe censure of + the flight of Justiniani, Phranza expresses his own feelings and those of + the public. For some private reasons, he is treated with more lenity and + respect by Ducas; but the words of Leonardus Chiensis express his strong + and recent indignation, gloriæ salutis suique oblitus. In the whole series + of their Eastern policy, his countrymen, the Genoese, were always + suspected, and often guilty. * Note: M. Brosset has given some extracts + from the Georgian account of the siege of Constantinople, in which + Justiniani's wound in the left foot is represented as more serious. With + charitable ambiguity the chronicler adds that his soldiers carried him + away with them in their vessel.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-59" id="linkJnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducas kills him with two + blows of Turkish soldiers; Chalcondyles wounds him in the shoulder, and + then tramples him in the gate. The grief of Phranza, carrying him among + the enemy, escapes from the precise image of his death; but we may, + without flattery, apply these noble lines of Dryden:— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + As to Sebastian, let them search the field; + And where they find a mountain of the slain, + Send one to climb, and looking down beneath, + There they will find him at his manly length, + With his face up to heaven, in that red monument + Which his good sword had digged.] +</pre> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-60" id="linkJnote-60"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 60 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-60">return</a>)<br /> [ Spondanus, (A.D. 1453, + No. 10,) who has hopes of his salvation, wishes to absolve this demand + from the guilt of suicide.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-61" id="linkJnote-61"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 61 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-61">return</a>)<br /> [ Leonardus Chiensis very + properly observes, that the Turks, had they known the emperor, would have + labored to save and secure a captive so acceptable to the sultan.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-62" id="linkJnote-62"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 62 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-62">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantemir, p. 96. The + Christian ships in the mouth of the harbor had flanked and retarded this + naval attack.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-63" id="linkJnote-63"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 63 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-63">return</a>)<br /> [ Chalcondyles most + absurdly supposes, that Constantinople was sacked by the Asiatics in + revenge for the ancient calamities of Troy; and the grammarians of the + xvth century are happy to melt down the uncouth appellation of Turks into + the more classical name of <i>Teucri</i>.] + </p> + <p> + The tidings of misfortune fly with a rapid wing; yet such was the extent + of Constantinople, that the more distant quarters might prolong, some + moments, the happy ignorance of their ruin. <a href="#linkJnote-64" + name="linkJnoteref-64" id="linkJnoteref-64">64</a> But in the general + consternation, in the feelings of selfish or social anxiety, in the tumult + and thunder of the assault, a <i>sleepless</i> night and morning <a + href="#linkJnote-641" name="linkJnoteref-641" id="linkJnoteref-641">641</a> + must have elapsed; nor can I believe that many Grecian ladies were + awakened by the Janizaries from a sound and tranquil slumber. On the + assurance of the public calamity, the houses and convents were instantly + deserted; and the trembling inhabitants flocked together in the streets, + like a herd of timid animals, as if accumulated weakness could be + productive of strength, or in the vain hope, that amid the crowd each + individual might be safe and invisible. From every part of the capital, + they flowed into the church of St. Sophia: in the space of an hour, the + sanctuary, the choir, the nave, the upper and lower galleries, were filled + with the multitudes of fathers and husbands, of women and children, of + priests, monks, and religious virgins: the doors were barred on the + inside, and they sought protection from the sacred dome, which they had so + lately abhorred as a profane and polluted edifice. Their confidence was + founded on the prophecy of an enthusiast or impostor; that one day the + Turks would enter Constantinople, and pursue the Romans as far as the + column of Constantine in the square before St. Sophia: but that this would + be the term of their calamities: that an angel would descend from heaven, + with a sword in his hand, and would deliver the empire, with that + celestial weapon, to a poor man seated at the foot of the column. "Take + this sword," would he say, "and avenge the people of the Lord." At these + animating words, the Turks would instantly fly, and the victorious Romans + would drive them from the West, and from all Anatolia as far as the + frontiers of Persia. It is on this occasion that Ducas, with some fancy + and much truth, upbraids the discord and obstinacy of the Greeks. "Had + that angel appeared," exclaims the historian, "had he offered to + exterminate your foes if you would consent to the union of the church, + even event then, in that fatal moment, you would have rejected your + safety, or have deceived your God." <a href="#linkJnote-65" + name="linkJnoteref-65" id="linkJnoteref-65">65</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-64" id="linkJnote-64"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 64 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-64">return</a>)<br /> [ When Cyrus suppressed + Babylon during the celebration of a festival, so vast was the city, and so + careless were the inhabitants, that much time elapsed before the distant + quarters knew that they were captives. Herodotus, (l. i. c. 191,) and + Usher, (Annal. p. 78,) who has quoted from the prophet Jeremiah a passage + of similar import.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-641" id="linkJnote-641"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 641 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-641">return</a>)<br /> [ This refers to an + expression in Ducas, who, to heighten the effect of his description, + speaks of the "sweet morning sleep resting on the eyes of youths and + maidens," p. 288. Edit. Bekker.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-65" id="linkJnote-65"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 65 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-65">return</a>)<br /> [ This lively description + is extracted from Ducas, (c. 39,) who two years afterwards was sent + ambassador from the prince of Lesbos to the sultan, (c. 44.) Till Lesbos + was subdued in 1463, (Phranza, l. iii. c. 27,) that island must have been + full of the fugitives of Constantinople, who delighted to repeat, perhaps + to adorn, the tale of their misery.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJ2HCH0004" id="linkJ2HCH0004"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXVIII: Reign Of Mahomet The Second, Extinction Of Eastern Empire.—Part + IV. + </h2> + <p> + While they expected the descent of the tardy angel, the doors were broken + with axes; and as the Turks encountered no resistance, their bloodless + hands were employed in selecting and securing the multitude of their + prisoners. Youth, beauty, and the appearance of wealth, attracted their + choice; and the right of property was decided among themselves by a prior + seizure, by personal strength, and by the authority of command. In the + space of an hour, the male captives were bound with cords, the females + with their veils and girdles. The senators were linked with their slaves; + the prelates, with the porters of the church; and young men of the + plebeian class, with noble maids, whose faces had been invisible to the + sun and their nearest kindred. In this common captivity, the ranks of + society were confounded; the ties of nature were cut asunder; and the + inexorable soldier was careless of the father's groans, the tears of the + mother, and the lamentations of the children. The loudest in their + wailings were the nuns, who were torn from the altar with naked bosoms, + outstretched hands, and dishevelled hair; and we should piously believe + that few could be tempted to prefer the vigils of the harem to those of + the monastery. Of these unfortunate Greeks, of these domestic animals, + whole strings were rudely driven through the streets; and as the + conquerors were eager to return for more prey, their trembling pace was + quickened with menaces and blows. At the same hour, a similar rapine was + exercised in all the churches and monasteries, in all the palaces and + habitations, of the capital; nor could any place, however sacred or + sequestered, protect the persons or the property of the Greeks. Above + sixty thousand of this devoted people were transported from the city to + the camp and fleet; exchanged or sold according to the caprice or interest + of their masters, and dispersed in remote servitude through the provinces + of the Ottoman empire. Among these we may notice some remarkable + characters. The historian Phranza, first chamberlain and principal + secretary, was involved with his family in the common lot. After suffering + four months the hardships of slavery, he recovered his freedom: in the + ensuing winter he ventured to Adrianople, and ransomed his wife from the + <i>mir bashi</i>, or master of the horse; but his two children, in the + flower of youth and beauty, had been seized for the use of Mahomet + himself. The daughter of Phranza died in the seraglio, perhaps a virgin: + his son, in the fifteenth year of his age, preferred death to infamy, and + was stabbed by the hand of the royal lover. <a href="#linkJnote-66" + name="linkJnoteref-66" id="linkJnoteref-66">66</a> A deed thus inhuman + cannot surely be expiated by the taste and liberality with which he + released a Grecian matron and her two daughters, on receiving a Latin doe + From ode from Philelphus, who had chosen a wife in that noble family. <a + href="#linkJnote-67" name="linkJnoteref-67" id="linkJnoteref-67">67</a> + The pride or cruelty of Mahomet would have been most sensibly gratified by + the capture of a Roman legate; but the dexterity of Cardinal Isidore + eluded the search, and he escaped from Galata in a plebeian habit. <a + href="#linkJnote-68" name="linkJnoteref-68" id="linkJnoteref-68">68</a> + The chain and entrance of the outward harbor was still occupied by the + Italian ships of merchandise and war. They had signalized their valor in + the siege: they embraced the moment of retreat, while the Turkish mariners + were dissipated in the pillage of the city. When they hoisted sail, the + beach was covered with a suppliant and lamentable crowd; but the means of + transportation were scanty: the Venetians and Genoese selected their + countrymen; and, notwithstanding the fairest promises of the sultan, the + inhabitants of Galata evacuated their houses, and embarked with their most + precious effects. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-66" id="linkJnote-66"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 66 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-66">return</a>)<br /> [ See Phranza, l. iii. c. + 20, 21. His expressions are positive: Ameras suâ manû jugulavit.... + volebat enim eo turpiter et nefarie abuti. Me miserum et infelicem! Yet he + could only learn from report the bloody or impure scenes that were acted + in the dark recesses of the seraglio.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-67" id="linkJnote-67"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 67 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-67">return</a>)<br /> [ See Tiraboschi (tom. vi. + P. i. p. 290) and Lancelot, (Mém. de l'Académie des Inscriptions, tom. x. + p. 718.) I should be curious to learn how he could praise the public + enemy, whom he so often reviles as the most corrupt and inhuman of + tyrants.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-68" id="linkJnote-68"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 68 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-68">return</a>)<br /> [ The commentaries of Pius + II. suppose that he craftily placed his cardinal's hat on the head of a + corpse which was cut off and exposed in triumph, while the legate himself + was bought and delivered as a captive of no value. The great Belgic + Chronicle adorns his escape with new adventures, which he suppressed (says + Spondanus, A.D. 1453, No. 15) in his own letters, lest he should lose the + merit and reward of suffering for Christ. * Note: He was sold as a slave + in Galata, according to Von Hammer, p. 175. See the somewhat vague and + declamatory letter of Cardinal Isidore, in the appendix to Clarke's + Travels, vol. ii. p. 653.—M.] + </p> + <p> + In the fall and the sack of great cities, an historian is condemned to + repeat the tale of uniform calamity: the same effects must be produced by + the same passions; and when those passions may be indulged without + control, small, alas! is the difference between civilized and savage man. + Amidst the vague exclamations of bigotry and hatred, the Turks are not + accused of a wanton or immoderate effusion of Christian blood: but + according to their maxims, (the maxims of antiquity,) the lives of the + vanquished were forfeited; and the legitimate reward of the conqueror was + derived from the service, the sale, or the ransom, of his captives of both + sexes. <a href="#linkJnote-69" name="linkJnoteref-69" id="linkJnoteref-69">69</a> + The wealth of Constantinople had been granted by the sultan to his + victorious troops; and the rapine of an hour is more productive than the + industry of years. But as no regular division was attempted of the spoil, + the respective shares were not determined by merit; and the rewards of + valor were stolen away by the followers of the camp, who had declined the + toil and danger of the battle. The narrative of their depredations could + not afford either amusement or instruction: the total amount, in the last + poverty of the empire, has been valued at four millions of ducats; <a + href="#linkJnote-70" name="linkJnoteref-70" id="linkJnoteref-70">70</a> + and of this sum a small part was the property of the Venetians, the + Genoese, the Florentines, and the merchants of Ancona. Of these + foreigners, the stock was improved in quick and perpetual circulation: but + the riches of the Greeks were displayed in the idle ostentation of palaces + and wardrobes, or deeply buried in treasures of ingots and old coin, lest + it should be demanded at their hands for the defence of their country. The + profanation and plunder of the monasteries and churches excited the most + tragic complaints. The dome of St. Sophia itself, the earthly heaven, the + second firmament, the vehicle of the cherubim, the throne of the glory of + God, <a href="#linkJnote-71" name="linkJnoteref-71" id="linkJnoteref-71">71</a> + was despoiled of the oblation of ages; and the gold and silver, the pearls + and jewels, the vases and sacerdotal ornaments, were most wickedly + converted to the service of mankind. After the divine images had been + stripped of all that could be valuable to a profane eye, the canvas, or + the wood, was torn, or broken, or burnt, or trod under foot, or applied, + in the stables or the kitchen, to the vilest uses. The example of + sacrilege was imitated, however, from the Latin conquerors of + Constantinople; and the treatment which Christ, the Virgin, and the + saints, had sustained from the guilty Catholic, might be inflicted by the + zealous Mussulman on the monuments of idolatry. Perhaps, instead of + joining the public clamor, a philosopher will observe, that in the decline + of the arts the workmanship could not be more valuable than the work, and + that a fresh supply of visions and miracles would speedily be renewed by + the craft of the priests and the credulity of the people. He will more + seriously deplore the loss of the Byzantine libraries, which were + destroyed or scattered in the general confusion: one hundred and twenty + thousand manuscripts are said to have disappeared; <a href="#linkJnote-72" + name="linkJnoteref-72" id="linkJnoteref-72">72</a> ten volumes might be + purchased for a single ducat; and the same ignominious price, too high + perhaps for a shelf of theology, included the whole works of Aristotle and + Homer, the noblest productions of the science and literature of ancient + Greece. We may reflect with pleasure that an inestimable portion of our + classic treasures was safely deposited in Italy; and that the mechanics of + a German town had invented an art which derides the havoc of time and + barbarism. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-69" id="linkJnote-69"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 69 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-69">return</a>)<br /> [ Busbequius expatiates + with pleasure and applause on the rights of war, and the use of slavery, + among the ancients and the Turks, (de Legat. Turcicâ, epist. iii. p. + 161.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-70" id="linkJnote-70"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 70 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-70">return</a>)<br /> [ This sum is specified in + a marginal Jnote of Leunclavius, (Chalcondyles, l. viii. p. 211,) but in + the distribution to Venice, Genoa, Florence, and Ancona, of 50, 20, and + 15,000 ducats, I suspect that a figure has been dropped. Even with the + restitution, the foreign property would scarcely exceed one fourth.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-71" id="linkJnote-71"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 71 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-71">return</a>)<br /> [ See the enthusiastic + praises and lamentations of Phranza, (l. iii. c. 17.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-72" id="linkJnote-72"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 72 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-72">return</a>)<br /> [ See Ducas, (c. 43,) and + an epistle, July 15th, 1453, from Laurus Quirinus to Pope Nicholas V., + (Hody de Græcis, p. 192, from a MS. in the Cotton library.)] + </p> + <p> + From the first hour <a href="#linkJnote-73" name="linkJnoteref-73" + id="linkJnoteref-73">73</a> of the memorable twenty-ninth of May, disorder + and rapine prevailed in Constantinople, till the eighth hour of the same + day; when the sultan himself passed in triumph through the gate of St. + Romanus. He was attended by his viziers, bashaws, and guards, each of whom + (says a Byzantine historian) was robust as Hercules, dexterous as Apollo, + and equal in battle to any ten of the race of ordinary mortals. The + conqueror <a href="#linkJnote-74" name="linkJnoteref-74" + id="linkJnoteref-74">74</a> gazed with satisfaction and wonder on the + strange, though splendid, appearance of the domes and palaces, so + dissimilar from the style of Oriental architecture. In the hippodrome, or + <i>atmeidan</i>, his eye was attracted by the twisted column of the three + serpents; and, as a trial of his strength, he shattered with his iron mace + or battle-axe the under jaw of one of these monsters, <a + href="#linkJnote-75" name="linkJnoteref-75" id="linkJnoteref-75">75</a> + which in the eyes of the Turks were the idols or talismans of the city. <a + href="#linkJnote-751" name="linkJnoteref-751" id="linkJnoteref-751">751</a> + At the principal door of St. Sophia, he alighted from his horse, and + entered the dome; and such was his jealous regard for that monument of his + glory, that on observing a zealous Mussulman in the act of breaking the + marble pavement, he admonished him with his cimeter, that, if the spoil + and captives were granted to the soldiers, the public and private + buildings had been reserved for the prince. By his command the metropolis + of the Eastern church was transformed into a mosque: the rich and portable + instruments of superstition had been removed; the crosses were thrown + down; and the walls, which were covered with images and mosaics, were + washed and purified, and restored to a state of naked simplicity. On the + same day, or on the ensuing Friday, the <i>muezin</i>, or crier, ascended + the most lofty turret, and proclaimed the <i>ezan</i>, or public + invitation in the name of God and his prophet; the imam preached; and + Mahomet and Second performed the <i>namaz</i> of prayer and thanksgiving + on the great altar, where the Christian mysteries had so lately been + celebrated before the last of the Cæsars. <a href="#linkJnote-76" + name="linkJnoteref-76" id="linkJnoteref-76">76</a> From St. Sophia he + proceeded to the august, but desolate mansion of a hundred successors of + the great Constantine, but which in a few hours had been stripped of the + pomp of royalty. A melancholy reflection on the vicissitudes of human + greatness forced itself on his mind; and he repeated an elegant distich of + Persian poetry: "The spider has wove his web in the Imperial palace; and + the owl hath sung her watch-song on the towers of Afrasiab." <a + href="#linkJnote-77" name="linkJnoteref-77" id="linkJnoteref-77">77</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-73" id="linkJnote-73"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 73 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-73">return</a>)<br /> [ The Julian Calendar, + which reckons the days and hours from midnight, was used at + Constantinople. But Ducas seems to understand the natural hours from + sunrise.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-74" id="linkJnote-74"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 74 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-74">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Turkish Annals, + p. 329, and the Pandects of Leunclavius, p. 448.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-75" id="linkJnote-75"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 75 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-75">return</a>)<br /> [ I have had occasion + (vol. ii. p. 100) to mention this curious relic of Grecian antiquity.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-751" id="linkJnote-751"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 751 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-751">return</a>)<br /> [ Von Hammer passes over + this circumstance, which is treated by Dr. Clarke (Travels, vol. ii. p. + 58, 4to. edit,) as a fiction of Thevenot. Chishull states that the + monument was broken by some attendants of the Polish ambassador.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-76" id="linkJnote-76"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 76 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-76">return</a>)<br /> [ We are obliged to + Cantemir (p. 102) for the Turkish account of the conversion of St. Sophia, + so bitterly deplored by Phranza and Ducas. It is amusing enough to + observe, in what opposite lights the same object appears to a Mussulman + and a Christian eye.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-77" id="linkJnote-77"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 77 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-77">return</a>)<br /> [ This distich, which + Cantemir gives in the original, derives new beauties from the application. + It was thus that Scipio repeated, in the sack of Carthage, the famous + prophecy of Homer. The same generous feeling carried the mind of the + conqueror to the past or the future.] + </p> + <p> + Yet his mind was not satisfied, nor did the victory seem complete, till he + was informed of the fate of Constantine; whether he had escaped, or been + made prisoner, or had fallen in the battle. Two Janizaries claimed the + honor and reward of his death: the body, under a heap of slain, was + discovered by the golden eagles embroidered on his shoes; the Greeks + acknowledged, with tears, the head of their late emperor; and, after + exposing the bloody trophy, <a href="#linkJnote-78" name="linkJnoteref-78" + id="linkJnoteref-78">78</a> Mahomet bestowed on his rival the honors of a + decent funeral. After his decease, Lucas Notaras, great duke, <a + href="#linkJnote-79" name="linkJnoteref-79" id="linkJnoteref-79">79</a> + and first minister of the empire, was the most important prisoner. When he + offered his person and his treasures at the foot of the throne, "And why," + said the indignant sultan, "did you not employ these treasures in the + defence of your prince and country?"—"They were yours," answered the + slave; "God had reserved them for your hands."—"If he reserved them + for me," replied the despot, "how have you presumed to withhold them so + long by a fruitless and fatal resistance?" The great duke alleged the + obstinacy of the strangers, and some secret encouragement from the Turkish + vizier; and from this perilous interview he was at length dismissed with + the assurance of pardon and protection. Mahomet condescended to visit his + wife, a venerable princess oppressed with sickness and grief; and his + consolation for her misfortunes was in the most tender strain of humanity + and filial reverence. A similar clemency was extended to the principal + officers of state, of whom several were ransomed at his expense; and + during some days he declared himself the friend and father of the + vanquished people. But the scene was soon changed; and before his + departure, the hippodrome streamed with the blood of his noblest captives. + His perfidious cruelty is execrated by the Christians: they adorn with the + colors of heroic martyrdom the execution of the great duke and his two + sons; and his death is ascribed to the generous refusal of delivering his + children to the tyrant's lust. <a href="#linkJnote-791" + name="linkJnoteref-791" id="linkJnoteref-791">791</a> Yet a Byzantine + historian has dropped an unguarded word of conspiracy, deliverance, and + Italian succor: such treason may be glorious; but the rebel who bravely + ventures, has justly forfeited his life; nor should we blame a conqueror + for destroying the enemies whom he can no longer trust. On the eighteenth + of June the victorious sultan returned to Adrianople; and smiled at the + base and hollow embassies of the Christian princes, who viewed their + approaching ruin in the fall of the Eastern empire. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-78" id="linkJnote-78"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 78 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-78">return</a>)<br /> [ I cannot believe with + Ducas (see Spondanus, A.D. 1453, No. 13) that Mahomet sent round Persia, + Arabia, &c., the head of the Greek emperor: he would surely content + himself with a trophy less inhuman.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-79" id="linkJnote-79"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 79 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-79">return</a>)<br /> [ Phranza was the personal + enemy of the great duke; nor could time, or death, or his own retreat to a + monastery, extort a feeling of sympathy or forgiveness. Ducas is inclined + to praise and pity the martyr; Chalcondyles is neuter, but we are indebted + to him for the hint of the Greek conspiracy.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-791" id="linkJnote-791"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 791 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-791">return</a>)<br /> [ Von Hammer relates + this undoubtingly, apparently on good authority, p. 559.—M.] + </p> + <p> + Constantinople had been left naked and desolate, without a prince or a + people. But she could not be despoiled of the incomparable situation which + marks her for the metropolis of a great empire; and the genius of the + place will ever triumph over the accidents of time and fortune. Boursa and + Adrianople, the ancient seats of the Ottomans, sunk into provincial towns; + and Mahomet the Second established his own residence, and that of his + successors, on the same commanding spot which had been chosen by + Constantine. <a href="#linkJnote-80" name="linkJnoteref-80" + id="linkJnoteref-80">80</a> The fortifications of Galata, which might + afford a shelter to the Latins, were prudently destroyed; but the damage + of the Turkish cannon was soon repaired; and before the month of August, + great quantities of lime had been burnt for the restoration of the walls + of the capital. As the entire property of the soil and buildings, whether + public or private, or profane or sacred, was now transferred to the + conqueror, he first separated a space of eight furlongs from the point of + the triangle for the establishment of his seraglio or palace. It is here, + in the bosom of luxury, that the <i>Grand Signor</i> (as he has been + emphatically named by the Italians) appears to reign over Europe and Asia; + but his person on the shores of the Bosphorus may not always be secure + from the insults of a hostile navy. In the new character of a mosque, the + cathedral of St. Sophia was endowed with an ample revenue, crowned with + lofty minarets, and surrounded with groves and fountains, for the devotion + and refreshment of the Moslems. The same model was imitated in the <i>jami</i>, + or royal mosques; and the first of these was built, by Mahomet himself, on + the ruins of the church of the holy apostles, and the tombs of the Greek + emperors. On the third day after the conquest, the grave of Abu Ayub, or + Job, who had fallen in the first siege of the Arabs, was revealed in a + vision; and it is before the sepulchre of the martyr that the new sultans + are girded with the sword of empire. <a href="#linkJnote-81" + name="linkJnoteref-81" id="linkJnoteref-81">81</a> Constantinople no + longer appertains to the Roman historian; nor shall I enumerate the civil + and religious edifices that were profaned or erected by its Turkish + masters: the population was speedily renewed; and before the end of + September, five thousand families of Anatolia and Romania had obeyed the + royal mandate, which enjoined them, under pain of death, to occupy their + new habitations in the capital. The throne of Mahomet was guarded by the + numbers and fidelity of his Moslem subjects: but his rational policy + aspired to collect the remnant of the Greeks; and they returned in crowds, + as soon as they were assured of their lives, their liberties, and the free + exercise of their religion. In the election and investiture of a + patriarch, the ceremonial of the Byzantine court was revived and imitated. + With a mixture of satisfaction and horror, they beheld the sultan on his + throne; who delivered into the hands of Gennadius the crosier or pastoral + staff, the symbol of his ecclesiastical office; who conducted the + patriarch to the gate of the seraglio, presented him with a horse richly + caparisoned, and directed the viziers and bashaws to lead him to the + palace which had been allotted for his residence. <a href="#linkJnote-82" + name="linkJnoteref-82" id="linkJnoteref-82">82</a> The churches of + Constantinople were shared between the two religions: their limits were + marked; and, till it was infringed by Selim, the grandson of Mahomet, the + Greeks <a href="#linkJnote-83" name="linkJnoteref-83" id="linkJnoteref-83">83</a> + enjoyed above sixty years the benefit of this equal partition. Encouraged + by the ministers of the divan, who wished to elude the fanaticism of the + sultan, the Christian advocates presumed to allege that this division had + been an act, not of generosity, but of justice; not a concession, but a + compact; and that if one half of the city had been taken by storm, the + other moiety had surrendered on the faith of a sacred capitulation. The + original grant had indeed been consumed by fire: but the loss was supplied + by the testimony of three aged Janizaries who remembered the transaction; + and their venal oaths are of more weight in the opinion of Cantemir, than + the positive and unanimous consent of the history of the times. <a + href="#linkJnote-84" name="linkJnoteref-84" id="linkJnoteref-84">84</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-80" id="linkJnote-80"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 80 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-80">return</a>)<br /> [ For the restitution of + Constantinople and the Turkish foundations, see Cantemir, (p. 102—109,) + Ducas, (c. 42,) with Thevenot, Tournefort, and the rest of our modern + travellers. From a gigantic picture of the greatness, population, &c., + of Constantinople and the Ottoman empire, (Abrégé de l'Histoire Ottomane, + tom. i. p. 16—21,) we may learn, that in the year 1586 the Moslems + were less numerous in the capital than the Christians, or even the Jews.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-81" id="linkJnote-81"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 81 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-81">return</a>)<br /> [ The <i>Turbé</i>, or + sepulchral monument of Abu Ayub, is described and engraved in the Tableau + Générale de l'Empire Ottoman, (Paris 1787, in large folio,) a work of less + use, perhaps, than magnificence, (tom. i. p. 305, 306.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-82" id="linkJnote-82"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 82 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-82">return</a>)<br /> [ Phranza (l. iii. c. 19) + relates the ceremony, which has possibly been adorned in the Greek reports + to each other, and to the Latins. The fact is confirmed by Emanuel + Malaxus, who wrote, in vulgar Greek, the History of the Patriarchs after + the taking of Constantinople, inserted in the Turco-Græcia of Crusius, (l. + v. p. 106—184.) But the most patient reader will not believe that + Mahomet adopted the Catholic form, "Sancta Trinitas quæ mihi donavit + imperium te in patriarcham novæ Romæ deligit."] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-83" id="linkJnote-83"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 83 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-83">return</a>)<br /> [ From the Turco-Græcia of + Crusius, &c. Spondanus (A.D. 1453, No. 21, 1458, No. 16) describes the + slavery and domestic quarrels of the Greek church. The patriarch who + succeeded Gennadius threw himself in despair into a well.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-84" id="linkJnote-84"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 84 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-84">return</a>)<br /> [ Cantemir (p. 101—105) + insists on the unanimous consent of the Turkish historians, ancient as + well as modern, and argues, that they would not have violated the truth to + diminish their national glory, since it is esteemed more honorable to take + a city by force than by composition. But, 1. I doubt this consent, since + he quotes no particular historian, and the Turkish Annals of Leunclavius + affirm, without exception, that Mahomet took Constantinople <i>per vim</i>, + (p. 329.) 2 The same argument may be turned in favor of the Greeks of the + times, who would not have forgotten this honorable and salutary treaty. + Voltaire, as usual, prefers the Turks to the Christians.] + </p> + <p> + The remaining fragments of the Greek kingdom in Europe and Asia I shall + abandon to the Turkish arms; but the final extinction of the two last + dynasties <a href="#linkJnote-85" name="linkJnoteref-85" + id="linkJnoteref-85">85</a> which have reigned in Constantinople should + terminate the decline and fall of the Roman empire in the East. The + despots of the Morea, Demetrius and Thomas, <a href="#linkJnote-86" + name="linkJnoteref-86" id="linkJnoteref-86">86</a> the two surviving + brothers of the name of Palæologus, were astonished by the death of the + emperor Constantine, and the ruin of the monarchy. Hopeless of defence, + they prepared, with the noble Greeks who adhered to their fortune, to seek + a refuge in Italy, beyond the reach of the Ottoman thunder. Their first + apprehensions were dispelled by the victorious sultan, who contented + himself with a tribute of twelve thousand ducats; and while his ambition + explored the continent and the islands, in search of prey, he indulged the + Morea in a respite of seven years. But this respite was a period of grief, + discord, and misery. The <i>hexamilion</i>, the rampart of the Isthmus, so + often raised and so often subverted, could not long be defended by three + hundred Italian archers: the keys of Corinth were seized by the Turks: + they returned from their summer excursions with a train of captives and + spoil; and the complaints of the injured Greeks were heard with + indifference and disdain. The Albanians, a vagrant tribe of shepherds and + robbers, filled the peninsula with rapine and murder: the two despots + implored the dangerous and humiliating aid of a neighboring bashaw; and + when he had quelled the revolt, his lessons inculcated the rule of their + future conduct. Neither the ties of blood, nor the oaths which they + repeatedly pledged in the communion and before the altar, nor the stronger + pressure of necessity, could reconcile or suspend their domestic quarrels. + They ravaged each other's patrimony with fire and sword: the alms and + succors of the West were consumed in civil hostility; and their power was + only exerted in savage and arbitrary executions. The distress and revenge + of the weaker rival invoked their supreme lord; and, in the season of + maturity and revenge, Mahomet declared himself the friend of Demetrius, + and marched into the Morea with an irresistible force. When he had taken + possession of Sparta, "You are too weak," said the sultan, "to control + this turbulent province: I will take your daughter to my bed; and you + shall pass the remainder of your life in security and honor." Demetrius + sighed and obeyed; surrendered his daughter and his castles; followed to + Adrianople his sovereign and his son; and received for his own + maintenance, and that of his followers, a city in Thrace and the adjacent + isles of Imbros, Lemnos, and Samothrace. He was joined the next year by a + companion <a href="#linkJnote-861" name="linkJnoteref-861" + id="linkJnoteref-861">861</a> of misfortune, the last of the Comnenian + race, who, after the taking of Constantinople by the Latins, had founded a + new empire on the coast of the Black Sea. <a href="#linkJnote-87" + name="linkJnoteref-87" id="linkJnoteref-87">87</a> In the progress of his + Anatolian conquest, Mahomet invested with a fleet and army the capital of + David, who presumed to style himself emperor of Trebizond; <a + href="#linkJnote-88" name="linkJnoteref-88" id="linkJnoteref-88">88</a> + and the negotiation was comprised in a short and peremptory question, + "Will you secure your life and treasures by resigning your kingdom? or had + you rather forfeit your kingdom, your treasures, and your life?" The + feeble Comnenus was subdued by his own fears, <a href="#linkJnote-881" + name="linkJnoteref-881" id="linkJnoteref-881">881</a> and the example of a + Mussulman neighbor, the prince of Sinope, <a href="#linkJnote-89" + name="linkJnoteref-89" id="linkJnoteref-89">89</a> who, on a similar + summons, had yielded a fortified city, with four hundred cannon and ten or + twelve thousand soldiers. The capitulation of Trebizond was faithfully + performed: <a href="#linkJnote-891" name="linkJnoteref-891" + id="linkJnoteref-891">891</a> and the emperor, with his family, was + transported to a castle in Romania; but on a slight suspicion of + corresponding with the Persian king, David, and the whole Comnenian race, + were sacrificed to the jealousy or avarice of the conqueror. <a + href="#linkJnote-892" name="linkJnoteref-892" id="linkJnoteref-892">892</a> + Nor could the name of father long protect the unfortunate Demetrius from + exile and confiscation; his abject submission moved the pity and contempt + of the sultan; his followers were transplanted to Constantinople; and his + poverty was alleviated by a pension of fifty thousand aspers, till a + monastic habit and a tardy death released Palæologus from an earthly + master. It is not easy to pronounce whether the servitude of Demetrius, or + the exile of his brother Thomas, <a href="#linkJnote-90" + name="linkJnoteref-90" id="linkJnoteref-90">90</a> be the most inglorious. + On the conquest of the Morea, the despot escaped to Corfu, and from thence + to Italy, with some naked adherents: his name, his sufferings, and the + head of the apostle St. Andrew, entitled him to the hospitality of the + Vatican; and his misery was prolonged by a pension of six thousand ducats + from the pope and cardinals. His two sons, Andrew and Manuel, were + educated in Italy; but the eldest, contemptible to his enemies and + burdensome to his friends, was degraded by the baseness of his life and + marriage. A title was his sole inheritance; and that inheritance he + successively sold to the kings of France and Arragon. <a + href="#linkJnote-91" name="linkJnoteref-91" id="linkJnoteref-91">91</a> + During his transient prosperity, Charles the Eighth was ambitious of + joining the empire of the East with the kingdom of Naples: in a public + festival, he assumed the appellation and the purple of <i>Augustus</i>: + the Greeks rejoiced and the Ottoman already trembled, at the approach of + the French chivalry. <a href="#linkJnote-92" name="linkJnoteref-92" + id="linkJnoteref-92">92</a> Manuel Palæologus, the second son, was tempted + to revisit his native country: his return might be grateful, and could not + be dangerous, to the Porte: he was maintained at Constantinople in safety + and ease; and an honorable train of Christians and Moslems attended him to + the grave. If there be some animals of so generous a nature that they + refuse to propagate in a domestic state, the last of the Imperial race + must be ascribed to an inferior kind: he accepted from the sultan's + liberality two beautiful females; and his surviving son was lost in the + habit and religion of a Turkish slave. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-85" id="linkJnote-85"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 85 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-85">return</a>)<br /> [ For the genealogy and + fall of the Comneni of Trebizond, see Ducange, (Fam. Byzant. p. 195;) for + the last Palæologi, the same accurate antiquarian, (p. 244, 247, 248.) The + Palæologi of Montferrat were not extinct till the next century; but they + had forgotten their Greek origin and kindred.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-86" id="linkJnote-86"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 86 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-86">return</a>)<br /> [ In the worthless story + of the disputes and misfortunes of the two brothers, Phranza (l. iii. c. + 21—30) is too partial on the side of Thomas Ducas (c. 44, 45) is too + brief, and Chalcondyles (l. viii. ix. x.) too diffuse and digressive.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-861" id="linkJnote-861"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 861 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-861">return</a>)<br /> [ Kalo-Johannes, the + predecessor of David his brother, the last emperor of Trebizond, had + attempted to organize a confederacy against Mahomet it comprehended Hassan + Bei, sultan of Mesopotamia, the Christian princes of Georgia and Iberia, + the emir of Sinope, and the sultan of Caramania. The negotiations were + interrupted by his sudden death, A.D. 1458. Fallmerayer, p. 257—260.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-87" id="linkJnote-87"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 87 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-87">return</a>)<br /> [ See the loss or conquest + of Trebizond in Chalcondyles, (l. ix. p. 263—266,) Ducas, (c. 45,) + Phranza, (l. iii. c. 27,) and Cantemir, (p. 107.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-88" id="linkJnote-88"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 88 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-88">return</a>)<br /> [ Though Tournefort (tom. + iii. lettre xvii. p. 179) speaks of Trebizond as mal peuplée, Peysonnel, + the latest and most accurate observer, can find 100,000 inhabitants, + (Commerce de la Mer Noire, tom. ii. p. 72, and for the province, p. 53—90.) + Its prosperity and trade are perpetually disturbed by the factious + quarrels of two <i>odas</i> of Janizaries, in one which 30,000 Lazi are + commonly enrolled, (Mémoires de Tott, tom. iii. p. 16, 17.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-881" id="linkJnote-881"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 881 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-881">return</a>)<br /> [ According to the + Georgian account of these transactions, (translated by M. Brosset, + additions to Le Beau, vol. xxi. p. 325,) the emperor of Trebizond humbly + entreated the sultan to have the goodness to marry one of his daughters.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-89" id="linkJnote-89"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 89 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-89">return</a>)<br /> [ Ismael Beg, prince of + Sinope or Sinople, was possessed (chiefly from his copper mines) of a + revenue of 200,000 ducats, (Chalcond. l. ix. p. 258, 259.) Peysonnel + (Commerce de la Mer Noire, tom. ii. p. 100) ascribes to the modern city + 60,000 inhabitants. This account seems enormous; yet it is by trading with + people that we become acquainted with their wealth and numbers.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-891" id="linkJnote-891"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 891 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-891">return</a>)<br /> [ M. Boissonade has + published, in the fifth volume of his Anecdota Græca (p. 387, 401.) a very + interesting letter from George Amiroutzes, protovestiarius of Trebizond, + to Bessarion, describing the surrender of Trebizond, and the fate of its + chief inhabitants.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-892" id="linkJnote-892"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 892 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-892">return</a>)<br /> [ See in Von Hammer, + vol. ii. p. 60, the striking account of the mother, the empress Helena the + Cantacuzene, who, in defiance of the edict, like that of Creon in the + Greek tragedy, dug the grave for her murdered children with her own hand, + and sank into it herself.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-90" id="linkJnote-90"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 90 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-90">return</a>)<br /> [ Spondanus (from Gobelin + Comment. Pii II. l. v.) relates the arrival and reception of the despot + Thomas at Rome,. (A.D. 1461 No. NO. 3.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-91" id="linkJnote-91"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 91 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-91">return</a>)<br /> [ By an act dated A.D. + 1494, Sept. 6, and lately transmitted from the archives of the Capitol to + the royal library of Paris, the despot Andrew Palæologus, reserving the + Morea, and stipulating some private advantages, conveys to Charles VIII., + king of France, the empires of Constantinople and Trebizond, (Spondanus, + A.D. 1495, No. 2.) M. D. Foncemagne (Mém. de l'Académie des Inscriptions, + tom. xvii. p. 539—578) has bestowed a dissertation on his national + title, of which he had obtained a copy from Rome.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-92" id="linkJnote-92"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 92 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-92">return</a>)<br /> [ See Philippe de Comines, + (l. vii. c. 14,) who reckons with pleasure the number of Greeks who were + prepared to rise, 60 miles of an easy navigation, eighteen days' journey + from Valona to Constantinople, &c. On this occasion the Turkish empire + was saved by the policy of Venice.] + </p> + <p> + The importance of Constantinople was felt and magnified in its loss: the + pontificate of Nicholas the Fifth, however peaceful and prosperous, was + dishonored by the fall of the Eastern empire; and the grief and terror of + the Latins revived, or seemed to revive, the old enthusiasm of the + crusades. In one of the most distant countries of the West, Philip duke of + Burgundy entertained, at Lisle in Flanders, an assembly of his nobles; and + the pompous pageants of the feast were skilfully adapted to their fancy + and feelings. <a href="#linkJnote-93" name="linkJnoteref-93" + id="linkJnoteref-93">93</a> In the midst of the banquet a gigantic Saracen + entered the hall, leading a fictitious elephant with a castle on his back: + a matron in a mourning robe, the symbol of religion, was seen to issue + from the castle: she deplored her oppression, and accused the slowness of + her champions: the principal herald of the golden fleece advanced, bearing + on his fist a live pheasant, which, according to the rites of chivalry, he + presented to the duke. At this extraordinary summons, Philip, a wise and + aged prince, engaged his person and powers in the holy war against the + Turks: his example was imitated by the barons and knights of the assembly: + they swore to God, the Virgin, the ladies and the <i>pheasant</i>; and + their particular vows were not less extravagant than the general sanction + of their oath. But the performance was made to depend on some future and + foreign contingency; and during twelve years, till the last hour of his + life, the duke of Burgundy might be scrupulously, and perhaps sincerely, + on the eve of his departure. Had every breast glowed with the same ardor; + had the union of the Christians corresponded with their bravery; had every + country, from Sweden <a href="#linkJnote-94" name="linkJnoteref-94" + id="linkJnoteref-94">94</a> to Naples, supplied a just proportion of + cavalry and infantry, of men and money, it is indeed probable that + Constantinople would have been delivered, and that the Turks might have + been chased beyond the Hellespont or the Euphrates. But the secretary of + the emperor, who composed every epistle, and attended every meeting, Æneas + Sylvius, <a href="#linkJnote-95" name="linkJnoteref-95" + id="linkJnoteref-95">95</a> a statesman and orator, describes from his own + experience the repugnant state and spirit of Christendom. "It is a body," + says he, "without a head; a republic without laws or magistrates. The pope + and the emperor may shine as lofty titles, as splendid images; but <i>they</i> + are unable to command, and none are willing to obey: every state has a + separate prince, and every prince has a separate interest. What eloquence + could unite so many discordant and hostile powers under the same standard? + Could they be assembled in arms, who would dare to assume the office of + general? What order could be maintained?—what military discipline? + Who would undertake to feed such an enormous multitude? Who would + understand their various languages, or direct their stranger and + incompatible manners? What mortal could reconcile the Germans with the + French, Genoa with Arragon, the Germans with the natives of Hungary and + Bohemia? If a small number enlisted in the holy war, they must be + overthrown by the infidels; if many, by their own weight and confusion." + Yet the same Æneas, when he was raised to the papal throne, under the name + of Pius the Second, devoted his life to the prosecution of the Turkish + war. In the council of Mantua he excited some sparks of a false or feeble + enthusiasm; but when the pontiff appeared at Ancona, to embark in person + with the troops, engagements vanished in excuses; a precise day was + adjourned to an indefinite term; and his effective army consisted of some + German pilgrims, whom he was obliged to disband with indulgences and arms. + Regardless of futurity, his successors and the powers of Italy were + involved in the schemes of present and domestic ambition; and the distance + or proximity of each object determined in their eyes its apparent + magnitude. A more enlarged view of their interest would have taught them + to maintain a defensive and naval war against the common enemy; and the + support of Scanderbeg and his brave Albanians might have prevented the + subsequent invasion of the kingdom of Naples. The siege and sack of + Otranto by the Turks diffused a general consternation; and Pope Sixtus was + preparing to fly beyond the Alps, when the storm was instantly dispelled + by the death of Mahomet the Second, in the fifty-first year of his age. <a + href="#linkJnote-96" name="linkJnoteref-96" id="linkJnoteref-96">96</a> + His lofty genius aspired to the conquest of Italy: he was possessed of a + strong city and a capacious harbor; and the same reign might have been + decorated with the trophies of the New and the Ancient Rome. <a + href="#linkJnote-97" name="linkJnoteref-97" id="linkJnoteref-97">97</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-93" id="linkJnote-93"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 93 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-93">return</a>)<br /> [ See the original feast + in Olivier de la Marche, (Mémoires, P. i. c. 29, 30,) with the abstract + and observations of M. de Ste. Palaye, (Mémoires sur la Chevalerie, tom. + i. P. iii. p. 182—185.) The peacock and the pheasant were + distinguished as royal birds.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-94" id="linkJnote-94"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 94 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-94">return</a>)<br /> [ It was found by an + actual enumeration, that Sweden, Gothland, and Finland, contained + 1,800,000 fighting men, and consequently were far more populous than at + present.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-95" id="linkJnote-95"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 95 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-95">return</a>)<br /> [ In the year 1454, + Spondanus has given, from Æneas Sylvius, a view of the state of Europe, + enriched with his own observations. That valuable annalist, and the + Italian Muratori, will continue the series of events from the year 1453 to + 1481, the end of Mahomet's life, and of this chapter.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-96" id="linkJnote-96"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 96 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-96">return</a>)<br /> [ Besides the two + annalists, the reader may consult Giannone (Istoria Civile, tom. iii. p. + 449—455) for the Turkish invasion of the kingdom of Naples. For the + reign and conquests of Mahomet II., I have occasionally used the Memorie + Istoriche de Monarchi Ottomanni di Giovanni Sagredo, (Venezia, 1677, in + 4to.) In peace and war, the Turks have ever engaged the attention of the + republic of Venice. All her despatches and archives were open to a + procurator of St. Mark, and Sagredo is not contemptible either in sense or + style. Yet he too bitterly hates the infidels: he is ignorant of their + language and manners; and his narrative, which allows only 70 pages to + Mahomet II., (p. 69—140,) becomes more copious and authentic as he + approaches the years 1640 and 1644, the term of the historic labors of + John Sagredo.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkJnote-97" id="linkJnote-97"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 97 (<a href="#linkJnoteref-97">return</a>)<br /> [ As I am now taking an + everlasting farewell of the Greek empire, I shall briefly mention the + great collection of Byzantine writers whose names and testimonies have + been successively repeated in this work. The Greeks presses of Aldus and + the Italians were confined to the classics of a better age; and the first + rude editions of Procopius, Agathias, Cedrenus, Zonaras, &c., were + published by the learned diligence of the Germans. The whole Byzantine + series (xxxvi. volumes in folio) has gradually issued (A.D. 1648, &c.) + from the royal press of the Louvre, with some collateral aid from Rome and + Leipsic; but the Venetian edition, (A.D. 1729,) though cheaper and more + copious, is not less inferior in correctness than in magnificence to that + of Paris. The merits of the French editors are various; but the value of + Anna Comnena, Cinnamus, Villehardouin, &c., is enhanced by the + historical Jnotes of Charles de Fresne du Cange. His supplemental works, + the Greek Glossary, the Constantinopolis Christiana, the Familiæ + Byzantinæ, diffuse a steady light over the darkness of the Lower Empire. * + Note: The new edition of the Byzantines, projected by Niebuhr, and + continued under the patronage of the Prussian government, is the most + convenient in size, and contains some authors (Leo Diaconus, Johannes + Lydus, Corippus, the new fragment of Dexippus, Eunapius, &c., + discovered by Mai) which could not be comprised in the former collections; + but the names of such editors as Bekker, the Dindorfs, &c., raised + hopes of something more than the mere republication of the text, and the + Jnotes of former editors. Little, I regret to say, has been added of + annotation, and in some cases, the old incorrect versions have been + retained.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> ======= <a name="linkK2HCH0001" id="linkK2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXIX: State Of Rome From The Twelfth Century.—Part I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + State Of Rome From The Twelfth Century.—Temporal Dominion + Of The Popes.—Seditions Of The City.—Political Heresy Of + Arnold Of Brescia.—Restoration Of The Republic.—The + Senators.—Pride Of The Romans.—Their Wars.—They Are + Deprived Of The Election And Presence Of The Popes, Who + Retire To Avignon.—The Jubilee.—Noble Families Of Rome.— + Feud Of The Colonna And Ursini. +</pre> + <p> + In the first ages of the decline and fall of the Roman empire, our eye is + invariably fixed on the royal city, which had given laws to the fairest + portion of the globe. We contemplate her fortunes, at first with + admiration, at length with pity, always with attention, and when that + attention is diverted from the capital to the provinces, they are + considered as so many branches which have been successively severed from + the Imperial trunk. The foundation of a second Rome, on the shores of the + Bosphorus, has compelled the historian to follow the successors of + Constantine; and our curiosity has been tempted to visit the most remote + countries of Europe and Asia, to explore the causes and the authors of the + long decay of the Byzantine monarchy. By the conquest of Justinian, we + have been recalled to the banks of the Tyber, to the deliverance of the + ancient metropolis; but that deliverance was a change, or perhaps an + aggravation, of servitude. Rome had been already stripped of her trophies, + her gods, and her Cæsars; nor was the Gothic dominion more inglorious and + oppressive than the tyranny of the Greeks. In the eighth century of the + Christian æra, a religious quarrel, the worship of images, provoked the + Romans to assert their independence: their bishop became the temporal, as + well as the spiritual, father of a free people; and of the Western empire, + which was restored by Charlemagne, the title and image still decorate the + singular constitution of modern Germany. The name of Rome must yet command + our involuntary respect: the climate (whatsoever may be its influence) was + no longer the same: <a href="#linkKnote-1" name="linkKnoteref-1" + id="linkKnoteref-1">1</a> the purity of blood had been contaminated + through a thousand channels; but the venerable aspect of her ruins, and + the memory of past greatness, rekindled a spark of the national character. + The darkness of the middle ages exhibits some scenes not unworthy of our + notice. Nor shall I dismiss the present work till I have reviewed the + state and revolutions of the Roman City, which acquiesced under the + absolute dominion of the popes, about the same time that Constantinople + was enslaved by the Turkish arms. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-1" id="linkKnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ The abbé Dubos, who, with + less genius than his successor Montesquieu, has asserted and magnified the + influence of climate, objects to himself the degeneracy of the Romans and + Batavians. To the first of these examples he replies, 1. That the change + is less real than apparent, and that the modern Romans prudently conceal + in themselves the virtues of their ancestors. 2. That the air, the soil, + and the climate of Rome have suffered a great and visible alteration, + (Réflexions sur la Poësie et sur la Peinture, part ii. sect. 16.) * Note: + This question is discussed at considerable length in Dr. Arnold's History + of Rome, ch. xxiii. See likewise Bunsen's Dissertation on the Aria Cattiva + Roms Beschreibung, pp. 82, 108.—M.] + </p> + <p> + In the beginning of the twelfth century, <a href="#linkKnote-2" + name="linkKnoteref-2" id="linkKnoteref-2">2</a> the æra of the first + crusade, Rome was revered by the Latins, as the metropolis of the world, + as the throne of the pope and the emperor, who, from the eternal city, + derived their title, their honors, and the right or exercise of temporal + dominion. After so long an interruption, it may not be useless to repeat + that the successors of Charlemagne and the Othos were chosen beyond the + Rhine in a national diet; but that these princes were content with the + humble names of kings of Germany and Italy, till they had passed the Alps + and the Apennine, to seek their Imperial crown on the banks of the Tyber. + <a href="#linkKnote-3" name="linkKnoteref-3" id="linkKnoteref-3">3</a> At + some distance from the city, their approach was saluted by a long + procession of the clergy and people with palms and crosses; and the + terrific emblems of wolves and lions, of dragons and eagles, that floated + in the military banners, represented the departed legions and cohorts of + the republic. The royal path to maintain the liberties of Rome was thrice + reiterated, at the bridge, the gate, and on the stairs of the Vatican; and + the distribution of a customary donative feebly imitated the magnificence + of the first Cæsars. In the church of St. Peter, the coronation was + performed by his successor: the voice of God was confounded with that of + the people; and the public consent was declared in the acclamations of + "Long life and victory to our lord the pope! long life and victory to our + lord the emperor! long life and victory to the Roman and Teutonic armies!" + <a href="#linkKnote-4" name="linkKnoteref-4" id="linkKnoteref-4">4</a> The + names of Cæsar and Augustus, the laws of Constantine and Justinian, the + example of Charlemagne and Otho, established the supreme dominion of the + emperors: their title and image was engraved on the papal coins; <a + href="#linkKnote-5" name="linkKnoteref-5" id="linkKnoteref-5">5</a> and + their jurisdiction was marked by the sword of justice, which they + delivered to the præfect of the city. But every Roman prejudice was + awakened by the name, the language, and the manners, of a Barbarian lord. + The Cæsars of Saxony or Franconia were the chiefs of a feudal aristocracy; + nor could they exercise the discipline of civil and military power, which + alone secures the obedience of a distant people, impatient of servitude, + though perhaps incapable of freedom. Once, and once only, in his life, + each emperor, with an army of Teutonic vassals, descended from the Alps. I + have described the peaceful order of his entry and coronation; but that + order was commonly disturbed by the clamor and sedition of the Romans, who + encountered their sovereign as a foreign invader: his departure was always + speedy, and often shameful; and, in the absence of a long reign, his + authority was insulted, and his name was forgotten. The progress of + independence in Germany and Italy undermined the foundations of the + Imperial sovereignty, and the triumph of the popes was the deliverance of + Rome. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-2" id="linkKnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ The reader has been so + long absent from Rome, that I would advise him to recollect or review the + xlixth chapter of this History.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-3" id="linkKnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ The coronation of the + German emperors at Rome, more especially in the xith century, is best + represented from the original monuments by Muratori (Antiquitat. Italiæ + Medii Ævi, tom. i. dissertat. ii. p. 99, &c.) and Cenni, (Monument. + Domin. Pontif. tom. ii. diss. vi. p. 261,) the latter of whom I only know + from the copious extract of Schmidt, (Hist. des Allemands tom. iii. p. 255—266.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-4" id="linkKnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ Exercitui Romano et + Teutonico! The latter was both seen and felt; but the former was no more + than magni nominis umbra.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-5" id="linkKnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ Muratori has given the + series of the papal coins, (Antiquitat. tom. ii. diss. xxvii. p. 548—554.) + He finds only two more early than the year 800: fifty are still extant + from Leo III. to Leo IX., with the addition of the reigning emperor none + remain of Gregory VII. or Urban II.; but in those of Paschal II. he seems + to have renounced this badge of dependence.] + </p> + <p> + Of her two sovereigns, the emperor had precariously reigned by the right + of conquest; but the authority of the pope was founded on the soft, though + more solid, basis of opinion and habit. The removal of a foreign influence + restored and endeared the shepherd to his flock. Instead of the arbitrary + or venal nomination of a German court, the vicar of Christ was freely + chosen by the college of cardinals, most of whom were either natives or + inhabitants of the city. The applause of the magistrates and people + confirmed his election, and the ecclesiastical power that was obeyed in + Sweden and Britain had been ultimately derived from the suffrage of the + Romans. The same suffrage gave a prince, as well as a pontiff, to the + capital. It was universally believed, that Constantine had invested the + popes with the temporal dominion of Rome; and the boldest civilians, the + most profane skeptics, were satisfied with disputing the right of the + emperor and the validity of his gift. The truth of the fact, the + authenticity of his donation, was deeply rooted in the ignorance and + tradition of four centuries; and the fabulous origin was lost in the real + and permanent effects. The name of <i>Dominus</i> or Lord was inscribed on + the coin of the bishops: their title was acknowledged by acclamations and + oaths of allegiance, and with the free, or reluctant, consent of the + German Cæsars, they had long exercised a supreme or subordinate + jurisdiction over the city and patrimony of St. Peter. The reign of the + popes, which gratified the prejudices, was not incompatible with the + liberties, of Rome; and a more critical inquiry would have revealed a + still nobler source of their power; the gratitude of a nation, whom they + had rescued from the heresy and oppression of the Greek tyrant. In an age + of superstition, it should seem that the union of the royal and sacerdotal + characters would mutually fortify each other; and that the keys of + Paradise would be the surest pledge of earthly obedience. The sanctity of + the office might indeed be degraded by the personal vices of the man. But + the scandals of the tenth century were obliterated by the austere and more + dangerous virtues of Gregory the Seventh and his successors; and in the + ambitious contests which they maintained for the rights of the church, + their sufferings or their success must equally tend to increase the + popular veneration. They sometimes wandered in poverty and exile, the + victims of persecution; and the apostolic zeal with which they offered + themselves to martyrdom must engage the favor and sympathy of every + Catholic breast. And sometimes, thundering from the Vatican, they created, + judged, and deposed the kings of the world; nor could the proudest Roman + be disgraced by submitting to a priest, whose feet were kissed, and whose + stirrup was held, by the successors of Charlemagne. <a href="#linkKnote-6" + name="linkKnoteref-6" id="linkKnoteref-6">6</a> Even the temporal interest + of the city should have protected in peace and honor the residence of the + popes; from whence a vain and lazy people derived the greatest part of + their subsistence and riches. The fixed revenue of the popes was probably + impaired; many of the old patrimonial estates, both in Italy and the + provinces, had been invaded by sacrilegious hands; nor could the loss be + compensated by the claim, rather than the possession, of the more ample + gifts of Pepin and his descendants. But the Vatican and Capitol were + nourished by the incessant and increasing swarms of pilgrims and + suppliants: the pale of Christianity was enlarged, and the pope and + cardinals were overwhelmed by the judgment of ecclesiastical and secular + causes. A new jurisprudence had established in the Latin church the right + and practice of appeals; <a href="#linkKnote-7" name="linkKnoteref-7" + id="linkKnoteref-7">7</a> and from the North and West the bishops and + abbots were invited or summoned to solicit, to complain, to accuse, or to + justify, before the threshold of the apostles. A rare prodigy is once + recorded, that two horses, belonging to the archbishops of Mentz and + Cologne, repassed the Alps, yet laden with gold and silver: <a + href="#linkKnote-8" name="linkKnoteref-8" id="linkKnoteref-8">8</a> but it + was soon understood, that the success, both of the pilgrims and clients, + depended much less on the justice of their cause than on the value of + their offering. The wealth and piety of these strangers were + ostentatiously displayed; and their expenses, sacred or profane, + circulated in various channels for the emolument of the Romans. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-6" id="linkKnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ See Ducange, Gloss. mediæ + et infimæ Latinitat. tom. vi. p. 364, 365, Staffa. This homage was paid by + kings to archbishops, and by vassals to their lords, (Schmidt, tom. iii. + p. 262;) and it was the nicest policy of Rome to confound the marks of + filial and of feudal subjection.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-7" id="linkKnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ The appeals from all the + churches to the Roman pontiff are deplored by the zeal of St. Bernard (de + Consideratione, l. iii. tom. ii. p. 431—442, edit. Mabillon, Venet. + 1750) and the judgment of Fleury, (Discours sur l'Hist. Ecclésiastique, + iv. et vii.) But the saint, who believed in the false decretals condemns + only the abuse of these appeals; the more enlightened historian + investigates the origin, and rejects the principles, of this new + jurisprudence.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-8" id="linkKnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ Germanici.... summarii non + levatis sarcinis onusti nihilominus repatriant inviti. Nova res! quando + hactenus aurum Roma refudit? Et nunc Romanorum consilio id usurpatum non + credimus, (Bernard, de Consideratione, l. iii. c. 3, p. 437.) The first + words of the passage are obscure, and probably corrupt.] + </p> + <p> + Such powerful motives should have firmly attached the voluntary and pious + obedience of the Roman people to their spiritual and temporal father. But + the operation of prejudice and interest is often disturbed by the sallies + of ungovernable passion. The Indian who fells the tree, that he may gather + the fruit, <a href="#linkKnote-9" name="linkKnoteref-9" id="linkKnoteref-9">9</a> + and the Arab who plunders the caravans of commerce, are actuated by the + same impulse of savage nature, which overlooks the future in the present, + and relinquishes for momentary rapine the long and secure possession of + the most important blessings. And it was thus, that the shrine of St. + Peter was profaned by the thoughtless Romans; who pillaged the offerings, + and wounded the pilgrims, without computing the number and value of + similar visits, which they prevented by their inhospitable sacrilege. Even + the influence of superstition is fluctuating and precarious; and the + slave, whose reason is subdued, will often be delivered by his avarice or + pride. A credulous devotion for the fables and oracles of the priesthood + most powerfully acts on the mind of a Barbarian; yet such a mind is the + least capable of preferring imagination to sense, of sacrificing to a + distant motive, to an invisible, perhaps an ideal, object, the appetites + and interests of the present world. In the vigor of health and youth, his + practice will perpetually contradict his belief; till the pressure of age, + or sickness, or calamity, awakens his terrors, and compels him to satisfy + the double debt of piety and remorse. I have already observed, that the + modern times of religious indifference are the most favorable to the peace + and security of the clergy. Under the reign of superstition, they had much + to hope from the ignorance, and much to fear from the violence, of + mankind. The wealth, whose constant increase must have rendered them the + sole proprietors of the earth, was alternately bestowed by the repentant + father and plundered by the rapacious son: their persons were adored or + violated; and the same idol, by the hands of the same votaries, was placed + on the altar, or trampled in the dust. In the feudal system of Europe, + arms were the title of distinction and the measure of allegiance; and + amidst their tumult, the still voice of law and reason was seldom heard or + obeyed. The turbulent Romans disdained the yoke, and insulted the + impotence, of their bishop: <a href="#linkKnote-10" name="linkKnoteref-10" + id="linkKnoteref-10">10</a> nor would his education or character allow him + to exercise, with decency or effect, the power of the sword. The motives + of his election and the frailties of his life were exposed to their + familiar observation; and proximity must diminish the reverence which his + name and his decrees impressed on a barbarous world. This difference has + not escaped the notice of our philosophic historian: "Though the name and + authority of the court of Rome were so terrible in the remote countries of + Europe, which were sunk in profound ignorance, and were entirely + unacquainted with its character and conduct, the pope was so little + revered at home, that his inveterate enemies surrounded the gates of Rome + itself, and even controlled his government in that city; and the + ambassadors, who, from a distant extremity of Europe, carried to him the + humble, or rather abject, submissions of the greatest potentate of the + age, found the utmost difficulty to make their way to him, and to throw + themselves at his feet." <a href="#linkKnote-11" name="linkKnoteref-11" + id="linkKnoteref-11">11</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-9" id="linkKnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ Quand les sauvages de la + Louisiane veulent avoir du fruit, ils coupent l'arbre au pied et cueillent + le fruit. Voila le gouvernement despotique, (Esprit des Loix, l. v. c. + 13;) and passion and ignorance are always despotic.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-10" id="linkKnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ In a free conversation + with his countryman Adrian IV., John of Salisbury accuses the avarice of + the pope and clergy: Provinciarum diripiunt spolia, ac si thesauros Crsi + studeant reparare. Sed recte cum eis agit Altissimus, quoniam et ipsi + aliis et sæpe vilissimis hominibus dati sunt in direptionem, (de Nugis + Curialium, l. vi. c. 24, p. 387.) In the next page, he blames the rashness + and infidelity of the Romans, whom their bishops vainly strove to + conciliate by gifts, instead of virtues. It is pity that this + miscellaneous writer has not given us less morality and erudition, and + more pictures of himself and the times.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-11" id="linkKnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ Hume's History of + England, vol. i. p. 419. The same writer has given us, from Fitz-Stephen, + a singular act of cruelty perpetrated on the clergy by Geoffrey, the + father of Henry II. "When he was master of Normandy, the chapter of Seez + presumed, without his consent, to proceed to the election of a bishop: + upon which he ordered all of them, with the bishop elect, to be castrated, + and made all their testicles be brought him in a platter." Of the pain and + danger they might justly complain; yet since they had vowed chastity he + deprived them of a superfluous treasure.] + </p> + <p> + Since the primitive times, the wealth of the popes was exposed to envy, + their powers to opposition, and their persons to violence. But the long + hostility of the mitre and the crown increased the numbers, and inflamed + the passions, of their enemies. The deadly factions of the Guelphs and + Ghibelines, so fatal to Italy, could never be embraced with truth or + constancy by the Romans, the subjects and adversaries both of the bishop + and emperor; but their support was solicited by both parties, and they + alternately displayed in their banners the keys of St. Peter and the + German eagle. Gregory the Seventh, who may be adored or detested as the + founder of the papal monarchy, was driven from Rome, and died in exile at + Salerno. Six-and-thirty of his successors, <a href="#linkKnote-12" + name="linkKnoteref-12" id="linkKnoteref-12">12</a> till their retreat to + Avignon, maintained an unequal contest with the Romans: their age and + dignity were often violated; and the churches, in the solemn rites of + religion, were polluted with sedition and murder. A repetition <a + href="#linkKnote-13" name="linkKnoteref-13" id="linkKnoteref-13">13</a> of + such capricious brutality, without connection or design, would be tedious + and disgusting; and I shall content myself with some events of the twelfth + century, which represent the state of the popes and the city. On Holy + Thursday, while Paschal officiated before the altar, he was interrupted by + the clamors of the multitude, who imperiously demanded the confirmation of + a favorite magistrate. His silence exasperated their fury; his pious + refusal to mingle the affairs of earth and heaven was encountered with + menaces, and oaths, that he should be the cause and the witness of the + public ruin. During the festival of Easter, while the bishop and the + clergy, barefooted and in procession, visited the tombs of the martyrs, + they were twice assaulted, at the bridge of St. Angelo, and before the + Capitol, with volleys of stones and darts. The houses of his adherents + were levelled with the ground: Paschal escaped with difficulty and danger; + he levied an army in the patrimony of St. Peter; and his last days were + embittered by suffering and inflicting the calamities of civil war. The + scenes that followed the election of his successor Gelasius the Second + were still more scandalous to the church and city. Cencio Frangipani, <a + href="#linkKnote-14" name="linkKnoteref-14" id="linkKnoteref-14">14</a> a + potent and factious baron, burst into the assembly furious and in arms: + the cardinals were stripped, beaten, and trampled under foot; and he + seized, without pity or respect, the vicar of Christ by the throat. + Gelasius was dragged by the hair along the ground, buffeted with blows, + wounded with spurs, and bound with an iron chain in the house of his + brutal tyrant. An insurrection of the people delivered their bishop: the + rival families opposed the violence of the Frangipani; and Cencio, who + sued for pardon, repented of the failure, rather than of the guilt, of his + enterprise. Not many days had elapsed, when the pope was again assaulted + at the altar. While his friends and enemies were engaged in a bloody + contest, he escaped in his sacerdotal garments. In this unworthy flight, + which excited the compassion of the Roman matrons, his attendants were + scattered or unhorsed; and, in the fields behind the church of St. Peter, + his successor was found alone and half dead with fear and fatigue. Shaking + the dust from his feet, the <i>apostle</i> withdrew from a city in which + his dignity was insulted and his person was endangered; and the vanity of + sacerdotal ambition is revealed in the involuntary confession, that one + emperor was more tolerable than twenty. <a href="#linkKnote-15" + name="linkKnoteref-15" id="linkKnoteref-15">15</a> These examples might + suffice; but I cannot forget the sufferings of two pontiffs of the same + age, the second and third of the name of Lucius. The former, as he + ascended in battle array to assault the Capitol, was struck on the temple + by a stone, and expired in a few days. The latter was severely wounded in + the person of his servants. In a civil commotion, several of his priests + had been made prisoners; and the inhuman Romans, reserving one as a guide + for his brethren, put out their eyes, crowned them with ludicrous mitres, + mounted them on asses with their faces towards the tail, and extorted an + oath, that, in this wretched condition, they should offer themselves as a + lesson to the head of the church. Hope or fear, lassitude or remorse, the + characters of the men, and the circumstances of the times, might sometimes + obtain an interval of peace and obedience; and the pope was restored with + joyful acclamations to the Lateran or Vatican, from whence he had been + driven with threats and violence. But the root of mischief was deep and + perennial; and a momentary calm was preceded and followed by such tempests + as had almost sunk the bark of St. Peter. Rome continually presented the + aspect of war and discord: the churches and palaces were fortified and + assaulted by the factions and families; and, after giving peace to Europe, + Calistus the Second alone had resolution and power to prohibit the use of + private arms in the metropolis. Among the nations who revered the + apostolic throne, the tumults of Rome provoked a general indignation; and + in a letter to his disciple Eugenius the Third, St. Bernard, with the + sharpness of his wit and zeal, has stigmatized the vices of the rebellious + people. <a href="#linkKnote-16" name="linkKnoteref-16" id="linkKnoteref-16">16</a> + "Who is ignorant," says the monk of Clairvaux, "of the vanity and + arrogance of the Romans? a nation nursed in sedition, untractable, and + scorning to obey, unless they are too feeble to resist. When they promise + to serve, they aspire to reign; if they swear allegiance, they watch the + opportunity of revolt; yet they vent their discontent in loud clamors, if + your doors, or your counsels, are shut against them. Dexterous in + mischief, they have never learned the science of doing good. Odious to + earth and heaven, impious to God, seditious among themselves, jealous of + their neighbors, inhuman to strangers, they love no one, by no one are + they beloved; and while they wish to inspire fear, they live in base and + continual apprehension. They will not submit; they know not how to govern + faithless to their superiors, intolerable to their equals, ungrateful to + their benefactors, and alike impudent in their demands and their refusals. + Lofty in promise, poor in execution; adulation and calumny, perfidy and + treason, are the familiar arts of their policy." Surely this dark portrait + is not colored by the pencil of Christian charity; <a href="#linkKnote-17" + name="linkKnoteref-17" id="linkKnoteref-17">17</a> yet the features, + however harsh or ugly, express a lively resemblance of the Roman of the + twelfth century. <a href="#linkKnote-18" name="linkKnoteref-18" + id="linkKnoteref-18">18</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-12" id="linkKnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ From Leo IX. and Gregory + VII. an authentic and contemporary series of the lives of the popes by the + cardinal of Arragon, Pandulphus Pisanus, Bernard Guido, &c., is + inserted in the Italian Historians of Muratori, (tom. iii. P. i. p. 277—685,) + and has been always before my eyes.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-13" id="linkKnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ The dates of years in + the contents may throughout his this chapter be understood as tacit + references to the Annals of Muratori, my ordinary and excellent guide. He + uses, and indeed quotes, with the freedom of a master, his great + collection of the Italian Historians, in xxviii. volumes; and as that + treasure is in my library, I have thought it an amusement, if not a duty, + to consult the originals.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-14" id="linkKnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ I cannot refrain from + transcribing the high-colored words of Pandulphus Pisanus, (p. 384.) Hoc + audiens inimicus pacis atque turbator jam fatus Centius Frajapane, more + draconis immanissimi sibilans, et ab imis pectoribus trahens longa + suspiria, accinctus retro gladio sine more cucurrit, valvas ac fores + confregit. Ecclesiam furibundus introiit, inde custode remoto papam per + gulam accepit, distraxit pugnis calcibusque percussit, et tanquam brutum + animal intra limen ecclesiæ acriter calcaribus cruentavit; et latro tantum + dominum per capillos et brachia, Jesû bono interim dormiente, detraxit, ad + domum usque deduxit, inibi catenavit et inclusit.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-15" id="linkKnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ Ego coram Deo et + Ecclesiâ dico, si unquam possibile esset, mallem unum imperatorem quam tot + dominos, (Vit. Gelas. II. p. 398.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-16" id="linkKnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ Quid tam notum seculis + quam protervia et cervicositas Romanorum? Gens insueta paci, tumultui + assueta, gens immitis et intractabilis usque adhuc, subdi nescia, nisi cum + non valet resistere, (de Considerat. l. iv. c. 2, p. 441.) The saint takes + breath, and then begins again: Hi, invisi terræ et clo, utrique injecere + manus, &c., (p. 443.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-17" id="linkKnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ As a Roman citizen, + Petrarch takes leave to observe, that Bernard, though a saint, was a man; + that he might be provoked by resentment, and possibly repent of his hasty + passion, &c. (Mémoires sur la Vie de Pétrarque, tom. i. p. 330.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-18" id="linkKnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ Baronius, in his index + to the xiith volume of his Annals, has found a fair and easy excuse. He + makes two heads, of Romani <i>Catholici</i> and <i>Schismatici</i>: to the + former he applies all the good, to the latter all the evil, that is told + of the city.] + </p> + <p> + The Jews had rejected the Christ when he appeared among them in a plebeian + character; and the Romans might plead their ignorance of his vicar when he + assumed the pomp and pride of a temporal sovereign. In the busy age of the + crusades, some sparks of curiosity and reason were rekindled in the + Western world: the heresy of Bulgaria, the Paulician sect, was + successfully transplanted into the soil of Italy and France; the Gnostic + visions were mingled with the simplicity of the gospel; and the enemies of + the clergy reconciled their passions with their conscience, the desire of + freedom with the profession of piety. <a href="#linkKnote-19" + name="linkKnoteref-19" id="linkKnoteref-19">19</a> The trumpet of Roman + liberty was first sounded by Arnold of Brescia, <a href="#linkKnote-20" + name="linkKnoteref-20" id="linkKnoteref-20">20</a> whose promotion in the + church was confined to the lowest rank, and who wore the monastic habit + rather as a garb of poverty than as a uniform of obedience. His + adversaries could not deny the wit and eloquence which they severely felt; + they confess with reluctance the specious purity of his morals; and his + errors were recommended to the public by a mixture of important and + beneficial truths. In his theological studies, he had been the disciple of + the famous and unfortunate Abelard, <a href="#linkKnote-21" + name="linkKnoteref-21" id="linkKnoteref-21">21</a> who was likewise + involved in the suspicion of heresy: but the lover of Eloisa was of a soft + and flexible nature; and his ecclesiastic judges were edified and disarmed + by the humility of his repentance. From this master, Arnold most probably + imbibed some metaphysical definitions of the Trinity, repugnant to the + taste of the times: his ideas of baptism and the eucharist are loosely + censured; but a political heresy was the source of his fame and + misfortunes. He presumed to quote the declaration of Christ, that his + kingdom is not of this world: he boldly maintained, that the sword and the + sceptre were intrusted to the civil magistrate; that temporal honors and + possessions were lawfully vested in secular persons; that the abbots, the + bishops, and the pope himself, must renounce either their state or their + salvation; and that after the loss of their revenues, the voluntary tithes + and oblations of the faithful would suffice, not indeed for luxury and + avarice, but for a frugal life in the exercise of spiritual labors. During + a short time, the preacher was revered as a patriot; and the discontent, + or revolt, of Brescia against her bishop, was the first fruits of his + dangerous lessons. But the favor of the people is less permanent than the + resentment of the priest; and after the heresy of Arnold had been + condemned by Innocent the Second, <a href="#linkKnote-22" + name="linkKnoteref-22" id="linkKnoteref-22">22</a> in the general council + of the Lateran, the magistrates themselves were urged by prejudice and + fear to execute the sentence of the church. Italy could no longer afford a + refuge; and the disciple of Abelard escaped beyond the Alps, till he found + a safe and hospitable shelter in Zurich, now the first of the Swiss + cantons. From a Roman station, <a href="#linkKnote-23" + name="linkKnoteref-23" id="linkKnoteref-23">23</a> a royal villa, a + chapter of noble virgins, Zurich had gradually increased to a free and + flourishing city; where the appeals of the Milanese were sometimes tried + by the Imperial commissaries. <a href="#linkKnote-24" + name="linkKnoteref-24" id="linkKnoteref-24">24</a> In an age less ripe for + reformation, the precursor of Zuinglius was heard with applause: a brave + and simple people imbibed, and long retained, the color of his opinions; + and his art, or merit, seduced the bishop of Constance, and even the + pope's legate, who forgot, for his sake, the interest of their master and + their order. Their tardy zeal was quickened by the fierce exhortations of + St. Bernard; <a href="#linkKnote-25" name="linkKnoteref-25" + id="linkKnoteref-25">25</a> and the enemy of the church was driven by + persecution to the desperate measures of erecting his standard in Rome + itself, in the face of the successor of St. Peter. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-19" id="linkKnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ The heresies of the + xiith century may be found in Mosheim, (Institut. Hist. Ecclés. p. 419—427,) + who entertains a favorable opinion of Arnold of Brescia. In the vth volume + I have described the sect of the Paulicians, and followed their migration + from Armenia to Thrace and Bulgaria, Italy and France.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-20" id="linkKnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ The original pictures of + Arnold of Brescia are drawn by Otho, bishop of Frisingen, (Chron. l. vii. + c. 31, de Gestis Frederici I. l. i. c. 27, l. ii. c. 21,) and in the iiid + book of the Ligurinus, a poem of Gunthur, who flourished A.D. 1200, in the + monastery of Paris near Basil, (Fabric. Bibliot. Latin. Med. et Infimæ + Ætatis, tom. iii. p. 174, 175.) The long passage that relates to Arnold is + produced by Guilliman, (de Rebus Helveticis, l. iii. c. 5, p. 108.) * + Note: Compare Franke, Arnold von Brescia und seine Zeit. Zurich, 1828.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-21" id="linkKnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ The wicked wit of Bayle + was amused in composing, with much levity and learning, the articles of + Abelard, Foulkes, Heloise, in his Dictionnaire Critique. The dispute of + Abelard and St. Bernard, of scholastic and positive divinity, is well + understood by Mosheim, (Institut. Hist. Ecclés. p. 412—415.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-22" id="linkKnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + ——Damnatus ab illo + Præsule, qui numeros vetitum contingere nostros + Nomen ad <i>innocuâ</i> ducit laudabile vitâ. + </pre> + <p class="foot"> + We may applaud the dexterity and correctness of Ligurinus, who turns the + unpoetical name of Innocent II. into a compliment.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-23" id="linkKnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ A Roman inscription of + Statio Turicensis has been found at Zurich, (D'Anville, Notice de + l'ancienne Gaul, p. 642—644;) but it is without sufficient warrant, + that the city and canton have usurped, and even monopolized, the names of + Tigurum and Pagus Tigurinus.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-24" id="linkKnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ Guilliman (de Rebus + Helveticis, l. iii. c. 5, p. 106) recapitulates the donation (A.D. 833) of + the emperor Lewis the Pious to his daughter the abbess Hildegardis. Curtim + nostram Turegum in ducatû Alamanniæ in pago Durgaugensi, with villages, + woods, meadows, waters, slaves, churches, &c.; a noble gift. Charles + the Bald gave the jus monetæ, the city was walled under Otho I., and the + line of the bishop of Frisingen, "Nobile Turegum multarum copia rerum," is + repeated with pleasure by the antiquaries of Zurich.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-25" id="linkKnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ Bernard, Epistol. cxcv. + tom. i. p. 187—190. Amidst his invectives he drops a precious + acknowledgment, qui, utinam quam sanæ esset doctrinæ quam districtæ est + vitæ. He owns that Arnold would be a valuable acquisition for the church.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkK2HCH0002" id="linkK2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXIX: State Of Rome From The Twelfth Century.—Part II. + </h2> + <p> + Yet the courage of Arnold was not devoid of discretion: he was protected, + and had perhaps been invited, by the nobles and people; and in the service + of freedom, his eloquence thundered over the seven hills. Blending in the + same discourse the texts of Livy and St. Paul, uniting the motives of + gospel, and of classic, enthusiasm, he admonished the Romans, how + strangely their patience and the vices of the clergy had degenerated from + the primitive times of the church and the city. He exhorted them to assert + the inalienable rights of men and Christians; to restore the laws and + magistrates of the republic; to respect the <i>name</i> of the emperor; + but to confine their shepherd to the spiritual government of his flock. <a + href="#linkKnote-26" name="linkKnoteref-26" id="linkKnoteref-26">26</a> + Nor could his spiritual government escape the censure and control of the + reformer; and the inferior clergy were taught by his lessons to resist the + cardinals, who had usurped a despotic command over the twenty-eight + regions or parishes of Rome. <a href="#linkKnote-27" name="linkKnoteref-27" + id="linkKnoteref-27">27</a> The revolution was not accomplished without + rapine and violence, the diffusion of blood and the demolition of houses: + the victorious faction was enriched with the spoils of the clergy and the + adverse nobles. Arnold of Brescia enjoyed, or deplored, the effects of his + mission: his reign continued above ten years, while two popes, Innocent + the Second and Anastasius the Fourth, either trembled in the Vatican, or + wandered as exiles in the adjacent cities. They were succeeded by a more + vigorous and fortunate pontiff. Adrian the Fourth, <a href="#linkKnote-28" + name="linkKnoteref-28" id="linkKnoteref-28">28</a> the only Englishman who + has ascended the throne of St. Peter; and whose merit emerged from the + mean condition of a monk, and almost a beggar, in the monastery of St. + Albans. On the first provocation, of a cardinal killed or wounded in the + streets, he cast an interdict on the guilty people; and from Christmas to + Easter, Rome was deprived of the real or imaginary comforts of religious + worship. The Romans had despised their temporal prince: they submitted + with grief and terror to the censures of their spiritual father: their + guilt was expiated by penance, and the banishment of the seditious + preacher was the price of their absolution. But the revenge of Adrian was + yet unsatisfied, and the approaching coronation of Frederic Barbarossa was + fatal to the bold reformer, who had offended, though not in an equal + degree, the heads of the church and state. In their interview at Viterbo, + the pope represented to the emperor the furious, ungovernable spirit of + the Romans; the insults, the injuries, the fears, to which his person and + his clergy were continually exposed; and the pernicious tendency of the + heresy of Arnold, which must subvert the principles of civil, as well as + ecclesiastical, subordination. Frederic was convinced by these arguments, + or tempted by the desire of the Imperial crown: in the balance of + ambition, the innocence or life of an individual is of small account; and + their common enemy was sacrificed to a moment of political concord. After + his retreat from Rome, Arnold had been protected by the viscounts of + Campania, from whom he was extorted by the power of Cæsar: the præfect of + the city pronounced his sentence: the martyr of freedom was burned alive + in the presence of a careless and ungrateful people; and his ashes were + cast into the Tyber, lest the heretics should collect and worship the + relics of their master. <a href="#linkKnote-29" name="linkKnoteref-29" + id="linkKnoteref-29">29</a> The clergy triumphed in his death: with his + ashes, his sect was dispersed; his memory still lived in the minds of the + Romans. From his school they had probably derived a new article of faith, + that the metropolis of the Catholic church is exempt from the penalties of + excommunication and interdict. Their bishops might argue, that the supreme + jurisdiction, which they exercised over kings and nations, more especially + embraced the city and diocese of the prince of the apostles. But they + preached to the winds, and the same principle that weakened the effect, + must temper the abuse, of the thunders of the Vatican. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-26" id="linkKnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ He advised the Romans, + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Consiliis armisque sua moderamina summa + Arbitrio tractare suo: nil juris in hâc re + Pontifici summo, modicum concedere regi + Suadebat populo. Sic læsâ stultus utrâque + Majestate, reum geminæ se fecerat aulæ. + </pre> + <p class="foot"> + Nor is the poetry of Gunther different from the prose of Otho.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-27" id="linkKnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ See Baronius (A.D. 1148, + No. 38, 39) from the Vatican MSS. He loudly condemns Arnold (A.D. 1141, + No. 3) as the father of the political heretics, whose influence then hurt + him in France.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-28" id="linkKnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ The English reader may + consult the Biographia Britannica, Adrian IV.; but our own writers have + added nothing to the fame or merits of their countrymen.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-29" id="linkKnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ Besides the historian + and poet already quoted, the last adventures of Arnold are related by the + biographer of Adrian IV. (Muratori. Script. Rerum Ital. tom. iii. P. i. p. + 441, 442.)] + </p> + <p> + The love of ancient freedom has encouraged a belief that as early as the + tenth century, in their first struggles against the Saxon Othos, the + commonwealth was vindicated and restored by the senate and people of Rome; + that two consuls were annually elected among the nobles, and that ten or + twelve plebeian magistrates revived the name and office of the tribunes of + the commons. <a href="#linkKnote-30" name="linkKnoteref-30" + id="linkKnoteref-30">30</a> But this venerable structure disappears before + the light of criticism. In the darkness of the middle ages, the + appellations of senators, of consuls, of the sons of consuls, may + sometimes be discovered. <a href="#linkKnote-31" name="linkKnoteref-31" + id="linkKnoteref-31">31</a> They were bestowed by the emperors, or assumed + by the most powerful citizens, to denote their rank, their honors, <a + href="#linkKnote-32" name="linkKnoteref-32" id="linkKnoteref-32">32</a> + and perhaps the claim of a pure and patrician descent: but they float on + the surface, without a series or a substance, the titles of men, not the + orders of government; <a href="#linkKnote-33" name="linkKnoteref-33" + id="linkKnoteref-33">33</a> and it is only from the year of Christ one + thousand one hundred and forty-four that the establishment of the senate + is dated, as a glorious æra, in the acts of the city. A new constitution + was hastily framed by private ambition or popular enthusiasm; nor could + Rome, in the twelfth century, produce an antiquary to explain, or a + legislator to restore, the harmony and proportions of the ancient model. + The assembly of a free, of an armed, people, will ever speak in loud and + weighty acclamations. But the regular distribution of the thirty-five + tribes, the nice balance of the wealth and numbers of the centuries, the + debates of the adverse orators, and the slow operations of votes and + ballots, could not easily be adapted by a blind multitude, ignorant of the + arts, and insensible of the benefits, of legal government. It was proposed + by Arnold to revive and discriminate the equestrian order; but what could + be the motive or measure of such distinction? <a href="#linkKnote-34" + name="linkKnoteref-34" id="linkKnoteref-34">34</a> The pecuniary + qualification of the knights must have been reduced to the poverty of the + times: those times no longer required their civil functions of judges and + farmers of the revenue; and their primitive duty, their military service + on horseback, was more nobly supplied by feudal tenures and the spirit of + chivalry. The jurisprudence of the republic was useless and unknown: the + nations and families of Italy who lived under the Roman and Barbaric laws + were insensibly mingled in a common mass; and some faint tradition, some + imperfect fragments, preserved the memory of the Code and Pandects of + Justinian. With their liberty the Romans might doubtless have restored the + appellation and office of consuls; had they not disdained a title so + promiscuously adopted in the Italian cities, that it has finally settled + on the humble station of the agents of commerce in a foreign land. But the + rights of the tribunes, the formidable word that arrested the public + counsels, suppose or must produce a legitimate democracy. The old + patricians were the subjects, the modern barons the tyrants, of the state; + nor would the enemies of peace and order, who insulted the vicar of + Christ, have long respected the unarmed sanctity of a plebeian magistrate. + <a href="#linkKnote-35" name="linkKnoteref-35" id="linkKnoteref-35">35</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-30" id="linkKnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ Ducange (Gloss. + Latinitatis Mediæ et Infimæ Ætatis, Decarchones, tom. ii. p. 726) gives me + a quotation from Blondus, (Decad. ii. l. ii.:) Duo consules ex nobilitate + quotannis fiebant, qui ad vetustum consulum exemplar summærerum præessent. + And in Sigonius (de Regno Italiæ, l. v. Opp. tom. ii. p. 400) I read of + the consuls and tribunes of the xth century. Both Blondus, and even + Sigonius, too freely copied the classic method of supplying from reason or + fancy the deficiency of records.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-31" id="linkKnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ In the panegyric of + Berengarius (Muratori, Script. Rer. Ital. tom. ii. P. i. p. 408) a Roman + is mentioned as consulis natus in the beginning of the xth century. + Muratori (Dissert. v.) discovers, in the years 952 and 956, Gratianus in + Dei nomine consul et dux, Georgius consul et dux; and in 1015, Romanus, + brother of Gregory VIII., proudly, but vaguely, styles himself consul et + dux et omnium Roma norum senator.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-32" id="linkKnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ As late as the xth + century, the Greek emperors conferred on the dukes of Venice, Naples, + Amalphi, &c., the title of upatoV or consuls, (see Chron. Sagornini, + passim;) and the successors of Charlemagne would not abdicate any of their + prerogative. But in general the names of <i>consul</i> and <i>senator</i>, + which may be found among the French and Germans, signify no more than + count and lord, (<i>Signeur</i>, Ducange Glossar.) The monkish writers are + often ambitious of fine classic words.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-33" id="linkKnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ The most constitutional + form is a diploma of Otho III., (A. D 998,) consulibus senatûs populique + Romani; but the act is probably spurious. At the coronation of Henry I., + A.D. 1014, the historian Dithmar (apud Muratori, Dissert. xxiii.) + describes him, a senatoribus duodecim vallatum, quorum sex rasi barbâ, + alii prolixâ, mystice incedebant cum baculis. The senate is mentioned in + the panegyric of Berengarius, (p. 406.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-34" id="linkKnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ In ancient Rome the + equestrian order was not ranked with the senate and people as a third + branch of the republic till the consulship of Cicero, who assumes the + merit of the establishment, (Plin. Hist. Natur. xxxiii. 3. Beaufort, + République Romaine, tom. i. p. 144—155.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-35" id="linkKnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ The republican plan of + Arnold of Brescia is thus stated by Gunther:— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Quin etiam titulos urbis renovare vetustos; + Nomine plebeio secernere nomen equestre, + Jura tribunorum, sanctum reparare senatum, + Et senio fessas mutasque reponere leges. + Lapsa ruinosis, et adhuc pendentia muris + Reddere primævo Capitolia prisca nitori. +</pre> + <p class="foot"> + But of these reformations, some were no more than ideas, others no more + than words.] + </p> + <p> + In the revolution of the twelfth century, which gave a new existence and + æra to Rome, we may observe the real and important events that marked or + confirmed her political independence. I. The Capitoline hill, one of her + seven eminences, <a href="#linkKnote-36" name="linkKnoteref-36" + id="linkKnoteref-36">36</a> is about four hundred yards in length, and two + hundred in breadth. A flight of a hundred steps led to the summit of the + Tarpeian rock; and far steeper was the ascent before the declivities had + been smoothed and the precipices filled by the ruins of fallen edifices. + From the earliest ages, the Capitol had been used as a temple in peace, a + fortress in war: after the loss of the city, it maintained a siege against + the victorious Gauls, and the sanctuary of the empire was occupied, + assaulted, and burnt, in the civil wars of Vitellius and Vespasian. <a + href="#linkKnote-37" name="linkKnoteref-37" id="linkKnoteref-37">37</a> + The temples of Jupiter and his kindred deities had crumbled into dust; + their place was supplied by monasteries and houses; and the solid walls, + the long and shelving porticos, were decayed or ruined by the lapse of + time. It was the first act of the Romans, an act of freedom, to restore + the strength, though not the beauty, of the Capitol; to fortify the seat + of their arms and counsels; and as often as they ascended the hill, the + coldest minds must have glowed with the remembrance of their ancestors. + II. The first Cæsars had been invested with the exclusive coinage of the + gold and silver; to the senate they abandoned the baser metal of bronze or + copper: <a href="#linkKnote-38" name="linkKnoteref-38" id="linkKnoteref-38">38</a> + the emblems and legends were inscribed on a more ample field by the genius + of flattery; and the prince was relieved from the care of celebrating his + own virtues. The successors of Diocletian despised even the flattery of + the senate: their royal officers at Rome, and in the provinces, assumed + the sole direction of the mint; and the same prerogative was inherited by + the Gothic kings of Italy, and the long series of the Greek, the French, + and the German dynasties. After an abdication of eight hundred years, the + Roman senate asserted this honorable and lucrative privilege; which was + tacitly renounced by the popes, from Paschal the Second to the + establishment of their residence beyond the Alps. Some of these republican + coins of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries are shown in the cabinets of + the curious. On one of these, a gold medal, Christ is depictured holding + in his left hand a book with this inscription: "The vow of the Roman + senate and people: Rome the capital of the world;" on the reverse, St. + Peter delivering a banner to a kneeling senator in his cap and gown, with + the name and arms of his family impressed on a shield. <a + href="#linkKnote-39" name="linkKnoteref-39" id="linkKnoteref-39">39</a> + III. With the empire, the præfect of the city had declined to a municipal + officer; yet he still exercised in the last appeal the civil and criminal + jurisdiction; and a drawn sword, which he received from the successors of + Otho, was the mode of his investiture and the emblem of his functions. <a + href="#linkKnote-40" name="linkKnoteref-40" id="linkKnoteref-40">40</a> + The dignity was confined to the noble families of Rome: the choice of the + people was ratified by the pope; but a triple oath of fidelity must have + often embarrassed the præfect in the conflict of adverse duties. <a + href="#linkKnote-41" name="linkKnoteref-41" id="linkKnoteref-41">41</a> A + servant, in whom they possessed but a third share, was dismissed by the + independent Romans: in his place they elected a patrician; but this title, + which Charlemagne had not disdained, was too lofty for a citizen or a + subject; and, after the first fervor of rebellion, they consented without + reluctance to the restoration of the præfect. About fifty years after this + event, Innocent the Third, the most ambitious, or at least the most + fortunate, of the Pontiffs, delivered the Romans and himself from this + badge of foreign dominion: he invested the præfect with a banner instead + of a sword, and absolved him from all dependence of oaths or service to + the German emperors. <a href="#linkKnote-42" name="linkKnoteref-42" + id="linkKnoteref-42">42</a> In his place an ecclesiastic, a present or + future cardinal, was named by the pope to the civil government of Rome; + but his jurisdiction has been reduced to a narrow compass; and in the days + of freedom, the right or exercise was derived from the senate and people. + IV. After the revival of the senate, <a href="#linkKnote-43" + name="linkKnoteref-43" id="linkKnoteref-43">43</a> the conscript fathers + (if I may use the expression) were invested with the legislative and + executive power; but their views seldom reached beyond the present day; + and that day was most frequently disturbed by violence and tumult. In its + utmost plenitude, the order or assembly consisted of fifty-six senators, + <a href="#linkKnote-44" name="linkKnoteref-44" id="linkKnoteref-44">44</a> + the most eminent of whom were distinguished by the title of counsellors: + they were nominated, perhaps annually, by the people; and a previous + choice of their electors, ten persons in each region, or parish, might + afford a basis for a free and permanent constitution. The popes, who in + this tempest submitted rather to bend than to break, confirmed by treaty + the establishment and privileges of the senate, and expected from time, + peace, and religion, the restoration of their government. The motives of + public and private interest might sometimes draw from the Romans an + occasional and temporary sacrifice of their claims; and they renewed their + oath of allegiance to the successor of St. Peter and Constantine, the + lawful head of the church and the republic. <a href="#linkKnote-45" + name="linkKnoteref-45" id="linkKnoteref-45">45</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-36" id="linkKnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ After many disputes + among the antiquaries of Rome, it seems determined, that the summit of the + Capitoline hill next the river is strictly the Mons Tarpeius, the Arx; and + that on the other summit, the church and convent of Araceli, the barefoot + friars of St. Francis occupy the temple of Jupiter, (Nardini, Roma Antica, + l. v. c. 11—16. * Note: The authority of Nardini is now vigorously + impugned, and the question of the Arx and the Temple of Jupiter revived, + with new arguments by Niebuhr and his accomplished follower, M. Bunsen. + Roms Beschreibung, vol. iii. p. 12, et seqq.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-37" id="linkKnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ Tacit. Hist. iii. 69, + 70.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-38" id="linkKnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ This partition of the + noble and baser metals between the emperor and senate must, however, be + adopted, not as a positive fact, but as the probable opinion of the best + antiquaries, * (see the Science des Medailles of the Père Joubert, tom. + ii. p. 208—211, in the improved and scarce edition of the Baron de + la Bastie. * Note: Dr. Cardwell (Lecture on Ancient Coins, p. 70, et seq.) + assigns convincing reasons in support of this opinion.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-39" id="linkKnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ In his xxviith + dissertation on the Antiquities of Italy, (tom. ii. p. 559—569,) + Muratori exhibits a series of the senatorian coins, which bore the obscure + names of <i>Affortiati</i>, <i>Infortiati</i>, <i>Provisini</i>, <i>Paparini</i>. + During this period, all the popes, without excepting Boniface VIII, + abstained from the right of coining, which was resumed by his successor + Benedict XI., and regularly exercised in the court of Avignon.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-40" id="linkKnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ A German historian, + Gerard of Reicherspeg (in Baluz. Miscell. tom. v. p. 64, apud Schmidt, + Hist. des Allemands, tom. iii. p. 265) thus describes the constitution of + Rome in the xith century: Grandiora urbis et orbis negotia spectant ad + Romanum pontificem itemque ad Romanum Imperatorem, sive illius vicarium + urbis præfectum, qui de suâ dignitate respicit utrumque, videlicet dominum + papam cui facit hominum, et dominum imperatorem a quo accipit suæ + potestatis insigne, scilicet gladium exertum.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-41" id="linkKnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ The words of a + contemporary writer (Pandulph. Pisan. in Vit. Paschal. II. p. 357, 358) + describe the election and oath of the præfect in 1118, inconsultis + patribus.... loca præfectoria.... Laudes præfectoriæ.... comitiorum + applausum.... juraturum populo in ambonem sublevant.... confirmari eum in + urbe præfectum petunt.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-42" id="linkKnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ Urbis præfectum ad + ligiam fidelitatem recepit, et per mantum quod illi donavit de præfecturâ + eum publice investivit, qui usque ad id tempus juramento fidelitatis + imperatori fuit obligatus et ab eo præfecturæ tenuit honorem, (Gesta + Innocent. III. in Muratori, tom. iii. P. i. p. 487.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-43" id="linkKnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ See Otho Frising. Chron. + vii. 31, de Gest. Frederic. I., l. i. c. 27.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-44" id="linkKnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ Cur countryman, Roger + Hoveden, speaks of the single senators, of the <i>Capuzzi</i> family, + &c., quorum temporibus melius regebatur Roma quam nunc (A.D. 1194) est + temporibus lvi. senatorum, (Ducange, Gloss. tom. vi. p. 191, Senatores.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-45" id="linkKnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ Muratori (dissert. xlii. + tom. iii. p. 785—788) has published an original treaty: Concordia + inter D. nostrum papam Clementem III. et senatores populi Romani super + regalibus et aliis dignitatibus urbis, &c., anno 44º senatûs. The + senate speaks, and speaks with authority: Reddimus ad præsens.... + habebimus.... dabitis presbetria.... jurabimus pacem et fidelitatem, &c. + A chartula de Tenementis Tusculani, dated in the 47th year of the same + æra, and confirmed decreto amplissimi ordinis senatûs, acclamatione P. R. + publice Capitolio consistentis. It is there we find the difference of + senatores consiliarii and simple senators, (Muratori, dissert. xlii. tom. + iii. p. 787—789.)] + </p> + <p> + The union and vigor of a public council was dissolved in a lawless city; + and the Romans soon adopted a more strong and simple mode of + administration. They condensed the name and authority of the senate in a + single magistrate, or two colleagues; and as they were changed at the end + of a year, or of six months, the greatness of the trust was compensated by + the shortness of the term. But in this transient reign, the senators of + Rome indulged their avarice and ambition: their justice was perverted by + the interest of their family and faction; and as they punished only their + enemies, they were obeyed only by their adherents. Anarchy, no longer + tempered by the pastoral care of their bishop, admonished the Romans that + they were incapable of governing themselves; and they sought abroad those + blessings which they were hopeless of finding at home. In the same age, + and from the same motives, most of the Italian republics were prompted to + embrace a measure, which, however strange it may seem, was adapted to + their situation, and productive of the most salutary effects. <a + href="#linkKnote-46" name="linkKnoteref-46" id="linkKnoteref-46">46</a> + They chose, in some foreign but friendly city, an impartial magistrate of + noble birth and unblemished character, a soldier and a statesman, + recommended by the voice of fame and his country, to whom they delegated + for a time the supreme administration of peace and war. The compact + between the governor and the governed was sealed with oaths and + subscriptions; and the duration of his power, the measure of his stipend, + the nature of their mutual obligations, were defined with scrupulous + precision. They swore to obey him as their lawful superior: he pledged his + faith to unite the indifference of a stranger with the zeal of a patriot. + At his choice, four or six knights and civilians, his assessors in arms + and justice, attended the <i>Podesta</i>, <a href="#linkKnote-47" + name="linkKnoteref-47" id="linkKnoteref-47">47</a> who maintained at his + own expense a decent retinue of servants and horses: his wife, his son, + his brother, who might bias the affections of the judge, were left behind: + during the exercise of his office he was not permitted to purchase land, + to contract an alliance, or even to accept an invitation in the house of a + citizen; nor could he honorably depart till he had satisfied the + complaints that might be urged against his government. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-46" id="linkKnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ Muratori (dissert. xlv. + tom. iv. p. 64—92) has fully explained this mode of government; and + the <i>Occulus Pastoralis</i>, which he has given at the end, is a + treatise or sermon on the duties of these foreign magistrates.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-47" id="linkKnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ In the Latin writers, at + least of the silver age, the title of <i>Potestas</i> was transferred from + the office to the magistrate:— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Hujus qui trahitur prætextam sumere mavis; + An Fidenarum Gabiorumque esse <i>Potestas</i>. + Juvenal. Satir. x. 99.11] +</pre> + <p> + <a name="linkK2HCH0003" id="linkK2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXIX: State Of Rome From The Twelfth Century.—Part III. + </h2> + <p> + It was thus, about the middle of the thirteenth century, that the Romans + called from Bologna the senator Brancaleone, <a href="#linkKnote-48" + name="linkKnoteref-48" id="linkKnoteref-48">48</a> whose fame and merit + have been rescued from oblivion by the pen of an English historian. A just + anxiety for his reputation, a clear foresight of the difficulties of the + task, had engaged him to refuse the honor of their choice: the statutes of + Rome were suspended, and his office prolonged to the term of three years. + By the guilty and licentious he was accused as cruel; by the clergy he was + suspected as partial; but the friends of peace and order applauded the + firm and upright magistrate by whom those blessings were restored. No + criminals were so powerful as to brave, so obscure as to elude, the + justice of the senator. By his sentence two nobles of the Annibaldi family + were executed on a gibbet; and he inexorably demolished, in the city and + neighborhood, one hundred and forty towers, the strong shelters of rapine + and mischief. The bishop, as a simple bishop, was compelled to reside in + his diocese; and the standard of Brancaleone was displayed in the field + with terror and effect. His services were repaid by the ingratitude of a + people unworthy of the happiness which they enjoyed. By the public + robbers, whom he had provoked for their sake, the Romans were excited to + depose and imprison their benefactor; nor would his life have been spared, + if Bologna had not possessed a pledge for his safety. Before his + departure, the prudent senator had required the exchange of thirty + hostages of the noblest families of Rome: on the news of his danger, and + at the prayer of his wife, they were more strictly guarded; and Bologna, + in the cause of honor, sustained the thunders of a papal interdict. This + generous resistance allowed the Romans to compare the present with the + past; and Brancaleone was conducted from the prison to the Capitol amidst + the acclamations of a repentant people. The remainder of his government + was firm and fortunate; and as soon as envy was appeased by death, his + head, enclosed in a precious vase, was deposited on a lofty column of + marble. <a href="#linkKnote-49" name="linkKnoteref-49" id="linkKnoteref-49">49</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-48" id="linkKnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ See the life and death + of Brancaleone, in the Historia Major of Matthew Paris, p. 741, 757, 792, + 797, 799, 810, 823, 833, 836, 840. The multitude of pilgrims and suitors + connected Rome and St. Albans, and the resentment of the English clergy + prompted them to rejoice when ever the popes were humbled and oppressed.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-49" id="linkKnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ Matthew Paris thus ends + his account: Caput vero ipsius Brancaleonis in vase pretioso super + marmoream columnam collocatum, in signum sui valoris et probitatis, quasi + reliquias, superstitiose nimis et pompose sustulerunt. Fuerat enim + superborum potentum et malefactorum urbis malleus et extirpator, et populi + protector et defensor veritatis et justitiæ imitator et amator, (p. 840.) + A biographer of Innocent IV. (Muratori, Script. tom. iii. P. i. p. 591, + 592) draws a less favorable portrait of this Ghibeline senator.] + </p> + <p> + The impotence of reason and virtue recommended in Italy a more effectual + choice: instead of a private citizen, to whom they yielded a voluntary and + precarious obedience, the Romans elected for their senator some prince of + independent power, who could defend them from their enemies and + themselves. Charles of Anjou and Provence, the most ambitious and warlike + monarch of the age, accepted at the same time the kingdom of Naples from + the pope, and the office of senator from the Roman people. <a + href="#linkKnote-50" name="linkKnoteref-50" id="linkKnoteref-50">50</a> As + he passed through the city, in his road to victory, he received their oath + of allegiance, lodged in the Lateran palace, and smoothed in a short visit + the harsh features of his despotic character. Yet even Charles was exposed + to the inconstancy of the people, who saluted with the same acclamations + the passage of his rival, the unfortunate Conradin; and a powerful + avenger, who reigned in the Capitol, alarmed the fears and jealousy of the + popes. The absolute term of his life was superseded by a renewal every + third year; and the enmity of Nicholas the Third obliged the Sicilian king + to abdicate the government of Rome. In his bull, a perpetual law, the + imperious pontiff asserts the truth, validity, and use of the donation of + Constantine, not less essential to the peace of the city than to the + independence of the church; establishes the annual election of the + senator; and formally disqualifies all emperors, kings, princes, and + persons of an eminent and conspicuous rank. <a href="#linkKnote-51" + name="linkKnoteref-51" id="linkKnoteref-51">51</a> This prohibitory clause + was repealed in his own behalf by Martin the Fourth, who humbly solicited + the suffrage of the Romans. In the presence, and by the authority, of the + people, two electors conferred, not on the pope, but on the noble and + faithful Martin, the dignity of senator, and the supreme administration of + the republic, <a href="#linkKnote-52" name="linkKnoteref-52" + id="linkKnoteref-52">52</a> to hold during his natural life, and to + exercise at pleasure by himself or his deputies. About fifty years + afterwards, the same title was granted to the emperor Lewis of Bavaria; + and the liberty of Rome was acknowledged by her two sovereigns, who + accepted a municipal office in the government of their own metropolis. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-50" id="linkKnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ The election of Charles + of Anjou to the office of perpetual senator of Rome is mentioned by the + historians in the viiith volume of the Collection of Muratori, by Nicholas + de Jamsilla, (p. 592,) the monk of Padua, (p. 724,) Sabas Malaspina, (l. + ii. c. 9, p. 308,) and Ricordano Malespini, (c. 177, p. 999.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-51" id="linkKnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ The high-sounding bull + of Nicholas III., which founds his temporal sovereignty on the donation of + Constantine, is still extant; and as it has been inserted by Boniface + VIII. in the <i>Sexte</i> of the Decretals, it must be received by the + Catholics, or at least by the Papists, as a sacred and perpetual law.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-52" id="linkKnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ I am indebted to Fleury + (Hist. Ecclés. tom. xviii. p. 306) for an extract of this Roman act, which + he has taken from the Ecclesiastical Annals of Odericus Raynaldus, A.D. + 1281, No. 14, 15.] + </p> + <p> + In the first moments of rebellion, when Arnold of Brescia had inflamed + their minds against the church, the Romans artfully labored to conciliate + the favor of the empire, and to recommend their merit and services in the + cause of Cæsar. The style of their ambassadors to Conrad the Third and + Frederic the First is a mixture of flattery and pride, the tradition and + the ignorance of their own history. <a href="#linkKnote-53" + name="linkKnoteref-53" id="linkKnoteref-53">53</a> After some complaint of + his silence and neglect, they exhort the former of these princes to pass + the Alps, and assume from their hands the Imperial crown. "We beseech your + majesty not to disdain the humility of your sons and vassals, not to + listen to the accusations of our common enemies; who calumniate the senate + as hostile to your throne, who sow the seeds of discord, that they may + reap the harvest of destruction. The pope and the <i>Sicilian</i> are + united in an impious league to oppose <i>our</i> liberty and <i>your</i> + coronation. With the blessing of God, our zeal and courage has hitherto + defeated their attempts. Of their powerful and factious adherents, more + especially the Frangipani, we have taken by assault the houses and + turrets: some of these are occupied by our troops, and some are levelled + with the ground. The Milvian bridge, which they had broken, is restored + and fortified for your safe passage; and your army may enter the city + without being annoyed from the castle of St. Angelo. All that we have + done, and all that we design, is for your honor and service, in the loyal + hope, that you will speedily appear in person, to vindicate those rights + which have been invaded by the clergy, to revive the dignity of the + empire, and to surpass the fame and glory of your predecessors. May you + fix your residence in Rome, the capital of the world; give laws to Italy, + and the Teutonic kingdom; and imitate the example of Constantine and + Justinian, <a href="#linkKnote-54" name="linkKnoteref-54" + id="linkKnoteref-54">54</a> who, by the vigor of the senate and people, + obtained the sceptre of the earth." <a href="#linkKnote-55" + name="linkKnoteref-55" id="linkKnoteref-55">55</a> But these splendid and + fallacious wishes were not cherished by Conrad the Franconian, whose eyes + were fixed on the Holy Land, and who died without visiting Rome soon after + his return from the Holy Land. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-53" id="linkKnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ These letters and + speeches are preserved by Otho bishop of Frisingen, (Fabric. Bibliot. Lat. + Med. et Infim. tom. v. p. 186, 187,) perhaps the noblest of historians: he + was son of Leopold marquis of Austria; his mother, Agnes, was daughter of + the emperor Henry IV., and he was half-brother and uncle to Conrad III. + and Frederic I. He has left, in seven books, a Chronicle of the Times; in + two, the Gesta Frederici I., the last of which is inserted in the vith + volume of Muratori's historians.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-54" id="linkKnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ We desire (said the + ignorant Romans) to restore the empire in um statum, quo fuit tempore + Constantini et Justiniani, qui totum orbem vigore senatûs et populi Romani + suis tenuere manibus.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-55" id="linkKnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ Otho Frising. de Gestis + Frederici I. l. i. c. 28, p. 662—664.] + </p> + <p> + His nephew and successor, Frederic Barbarossa, was more ambitious of the + Imperial crown; nor had any of the successors of Otho acquired such + absolute sway over the kingdom of Italy. Surrounded by his ecclesiastical + and secular princes, he gave audience in his camp at Sutri to the + ambassadors of Rome, who thus addressed him in a free and florid oration: + "Incline your ear to the queen of cities; approach with a peaceful and + friendly mind the precincts of Rome, which has cast away the yoke of the + clergy, and is impatient to crown her legitimate emperor. Under your + auspicious influence, may the primitive times be restored. Assert the + prerogatives of the eternal city, and reduce under her monarchy the + insolence of the world. You are not ignorant, that, in former ages, by the + wisdom of the senate, by the valor and discipline of the equestrian order, + she extended her victorious arms to the East and West, beyond the Alps, + and over the islands of the ocean. By our sins, in the absence of our + princes, the noble institution of the senate has sunk in oblivion; and + with our prudence, our strength has likewise decreased. We have revived + the senate, and the equestrian order: the counsels of the one, the arms of + the other, will be devoted to your person and the service of the empire. + Do you not hear the language of the Roman matron? You were a guest, I have + adopted you as a citizen; a Transalpine stranger, I have elected you for + my sovereign; <a href="#linkKnote-56" name="linkKnoteref-56" + id="linkKnoteref-56">56</a> and given you myself, and all that is mine. + Your first and most sacred duty is to swear and subscribe, that you will + shed your blood for the republic; that you will maintain in peace and + justice the laws of the city and the charters of your predecessors; and + that you will reward with five thousand pounds of silver the faithful + senators who shall proclaim your titles in the Capitol. With the name, + assume the character, of Augustus." The flowers of Latin rhetoric were not + yet exhausted; but Frederic, impatient of their vanity, interrupted the + orators in the high tone of royalty and conquest. "Famous indeed have been + the fortitude and wisdom of the ancient Romans; but your speech is not + seasoned with wisdom, and I could wish that fortitude were conspicuous in + your actions. Like all sublunary things, Rome has felt the vicissitudes of + time and fortune. Your noblest families were translated to the East, to + the royal city of Constantine; and the remains of your strength and + freedom have long since been exhausted by the Greeks and Franks. Are you + desirous of beholding the ancient glory of Rome, the gravity of the + senate, the spirit of the knights, the discipline of the camp, the valor + of the legions? you will find them in the German republic. It is not + empire, naked and alone, the ornaments and virtues of empire have likewise + migrated beyond the Alps to a more deserving people: <a + href="#linkKnote-57" name="linkKnoteref-57" id="linkKnoteref-57">57</a> + they will be employed in your defence, but they claim your obedience. You + pretend that myself or my predecessors have been invited by the Romans: + you mistake the word; they were not invited, they were implored. From its + foreign and domestic tyrants, the city was rescued by Charlemagne and + Otho, whose ashes repose in our country; and their dominion was the price + of your deliverance. Under that dominion your ancestors lived and died. I + claim by the right of inheritance and possession, and who shall dare to + extort you from my hands? Is the hand of the Franks <a href="#linkKnote-58" + name="linkKnoteref-58" id="linkKnoteref-58">58</a> and Germans enfeebled + by age? Am I vanquished? Am I a captive? Am I not encompassed with the + banners of a potent and invincible army? You impose conditions on your + master; you require oaths: if the conditions are just, an oath is + superfluous; if unjust, it is criminal. Can you doubt my equity? It is + extended to the meanest of my subjects. Will not my sword be unsheathed in + the defence of the Capitol? By that sword the northern kingdom of Denmark + has been restored to the Roman empire. You prescribe the measure and the + objects of my bounty, which flows in a copious but a voluntary stream. All + will be given to patient merit; all will be denied to rude importunity." + <a href="#linkKnote-59" name="linkKnoteref-59" id="linkKnoteref-59">59</a> + Neither the emperor nor the senate could maintain these lofty pretensions + of dominion and liberty. United with the pope, and suspicious of the + Romans, Frederic continued his march to the Vatican; his coronation was + disturbed by a sally from the Capitol; and if the numbers and valor of the + Germans prevailed in the bloody conflict, he could not safely encamp in + the presence of a city of which he styled himself the sovereign. About + twelve years afterwards, he besieged Rome, to seat an antipope in the + chair of St. Peter; and twelve Pisan galleys were introduced into the + Tyber: but the senate and people were saved by the arts of negotiation and + the progress of disease; nor did Frederic or his successors reiterate the + hostile attempt. Their laborious reigns were exercised by the popes, the + crusades, and the independence of Lombardy and Germany: they courted the + alliance of the Romans; and Frederic the Second offered in the Capitol the + great standard, the <i>Caroccio</i> of Milan. <a href="#linkKnote-60" + name="linkKnoteref-60" id="linkKnoteref-60">60</a> After the extinction of + the house of Swabia, they were banished beyond the Alps: and their last + coronations betrayed the impotence and poverty of the Teutonic Cæsars. <a + href="#linkKnote-61" name="linkKnoteref-61" id="linkKnoteref-61">61</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-56" id="linkKnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ Hospes eras, civem feci. + Advena fuisti ex Transalpinis partibus principem constitui.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-57" id="linkKnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ Non cessit nobis nudum + imperium, virtute sua amictum venit, ornamenta sua secum traxit. Penes nos + sunt consules tui, &c. Cicero or Livy would not have rejected these + images, the eloquence of a Barbarian born and educated in the Hercynian + forest.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-58" id="linkKnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ Otho of Frisingen, who + surely understood the language of the court and diet of Germany, speaks of + the Franks in the xiith century as the reigning nation, (Proceres Franci, + equites Franci, manus Francorum:) he adds, however, the epithet of <i>Teutonici</i>.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-59" id="linkKnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ Otho Frising. de Gestis + Frederici I., l. ii. c. 22, p. 720—733. These original and authentic + acts I have translated and abridged with freedom, yet with fidelity.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-60" id="linkKnote-60"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 60 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-60">return</a>)<br /> [ From the Chronicles of + Ricobaldo and Francis Pipin, Muratori (dissert. xxvi. tom. ii. p. 492) has + translated this curious fact with the doggerel verses that accompanied the + gift:— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Ave decus orbis, ave! victus tibi destinor, ave! + Currus ab Augusto Frederico Cæsare justo. + Væ Mediolanum! jam sentis spernere vanum + Imperii vires, proprias tibi tollere vires. + Ergo triumphorum urbs potes memor esse priorum + Quos tibi mittebant reges qui bella gerebant. +</pre> + <p class="foot"> + Ne si dee tacere (I now use the Italian Dissertations, tom. i. p. 444) che + nell' anno 1727, una copia desso Caroccio in marmo dianzi ignoto si + scopri, nel campidoglio, presso alle carcere di quel luogo, dove Sisto V. + l'avea falto rinchiudere. Stava esso posto sopra quatro colonne di marmo + fino colla sequente inscrizione, &c.; to the same purpose as the old + inscription.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-61" id="linkKnote-61"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 61 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-61">return</a>)<br /> [ The decline of the + Imperial arms and authority in Italy is related with impartial learning in + the Annals of Muratori, (tom. x. xi. xii.;) and the reader may compare his + narrative with the Histoires des Allemands (tom. iii. iv.) by Schmidt, who + has deserved the esteem of his countrymen.] + </p> + <p> + Under the reign of Adrian, when the empire extended from the Euphrates to + the ocean, from Mount Atlas to the Grampian hills, a fanciful historian <a + href="#linkKnote-62" name="linkKnoteref-62" id="linkKnoteref-62">62</a> + amused the Romans with the picture of their ancient wars. "There was a + time," says Florus, "when Tibur and Præneste, our summer retreats, were + the objects of hostile vows in the Capitol, when we dreaded the shades of + the Arician groves, when we could triumph without a blush over the + nameless villages of the Sabines and Latins, and even Corioli could afford + a title not unworthy of a victorious general." The pride of his + contemporaries was gratified by the contrast of the past and the present: + they would have been humbled by the prospect of futurity; by the + prediction, that after a thousand years, Rome, despoiled of empire, and + contracted to her primæval limits, would renew the same hostilities, on + the same ground which was then decorated with her villas and gardens. The + adjacent territory on either side of the Tyber was always claimed, and + sometimes possessed, as the patrimony of St. Peter; but the barons assumed + a lawless independence, and the cities too faithfully copied the revolt + and discord of the metropolis. In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries the + Romans incessantly labored to reduce or destroy the contumacious vassals + of the church and senate; and if their headstrong and selfish ambition was + moderated by the pope, he often encouraged their zeal by the alliance of + his spiritual arms. Their warfare was that of the first consuls and + dictators, who were taken from the plough. The assembled in arms at the + foot of the Capitol; sallied from the gates, plundered or burnt the + harvests of their neighbors, engaged in tumultuary conflict, and returned + home after an expedition of fifteen or twenty days. Their sieges were + tedious and unskilful: in the use of victory, they indulged the meaner + passions of jealousy and revenge; and instead of adopting the valor, they + trampled on the misfortunes, of their adversaries. The captives, in their + shirts, with a rope round their necks, solicited their pardon: the + fortifications, and even the buildings, of the rival cities, were + demolished, and the inhabitants were scattered in the adjacent villages. + It was thus that the seats of the cardinal bishops, Porto, Ostia, Albanum, + Tusculum, Præneste, and Tibur or Tivoli, were successively overthrown by + the ferocious hostility of the Romans. <a href="#linkKnote-63" + name="linkKnoteref-63" id="linkKnoteref-63">63</a> Of these, <a + href="#linkKnote-64" name="linkKnoteref-64" id="linkKnoteref-64">64</a> + Porto and Ostia, the two keys of the Tyber, are still vacant and desolate: + the marshy and unwholesome banks are peopled with herds of buffaloes, and + the river is lost to every purpose of navigation and trade. The hills, + which afford a shady retirement from the autumnal heats, have again smiled + with the blessings of peace; Frescati has arisen near the ruins of + Tusculum; Tibur or Tivoli has resumed the honors of a city, <a + href="#linkKnote-65" name="linkKnoteref-65" id="linkKnoteref-65">65</a> + and the meaner towns of Albano and Palestrina are decorated with the + villas of the cardinals and princes of Rome. In the work of destruction, + the ambition of the Romans was often checked and repulsed by the + neighboring cities and their allies: in the first siege of Tibur, they + were driven from their camp; and the battles of Tusculum <a + href="#linkKnote-66" name="linkKnoteref-66" id="linkKnoteref-66">66</a> + and Viterbo <a href="#linkKnote-67" name="linkKnoteref-67" + id="linkKnoteref-67">67</a> might be compared in their relative state to + the memorable fields of Thrasymene and Cannæ. In the first of these petty + wars, thirty thousand Romans were overthrown by a thousand German horse, + whom Frederic Barbarossa had detached to the relief of Tusculum: and if we + number the slain at three, the prisoners at two, thousand, we shall + embrace the most authentic and moderate account. Sixty-eight years + afterwards they marched against Viterbo in the ecclesiastical state with + the whole force of the city; by a rare coalition the Teutonic eagle was + blended, in the adverse banners, with the keys of St. Peter; and the + pope's auxiliaries were commanded by a count of Thoulouse and a bishop of + Winchester. The Romans were discomfited with shame and slaughter: but the + English prelate must have indulged the vanity of a pilgrim, if he + multiplied their numbers to one hundred, and their loss in the field to + thirty, thousand men. Had the policy of the senate and the discipline of + the legions been restored with the Capitol, the divided condition of Italy + would have offered the fairest opportunity of a second conquest. But in + arms, the modern Romans were not <i>above</i>, and in arts, they were far + <i>below</i>, the common level of the neighboring republics. Nor was their + warlike spirit of any long continuance; after some irregular sallies, they + subsided in the national apathy, in the neglect of military institutions, + and in the disgraceful and dangerous use of foreign mercenaries. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-62" id="linkKnote-62"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 62 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-62">return</a>)<br /> [ Tibur nunc suburbanum, + et æstivæ Præneste deliciæ, nuncupatis in Capitolio votis petebantur. The + whole passage of Florus (l. i. c. 11) may be read with pleasure, and has + deserved the praise of a man of genius, (uvres de Montesquieu, tom. iii. + p. 634, 635, quarto edition.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-63" id="linkKnote-63"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 63 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-63">return</a>)<br /> [ Ne a feritate Romanorum, + sicut fuerant Hostienses, Portuenses, Tusculanenses, Albanenses, + Labicenses, et nuper Tiburtini destruerentur, (Matthew Paris, p. 757.) + These events are marked in the Annals and Index (the xviiith volume) of + Muratori.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-64" id="linkKnote-64"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 64 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-64">return</a>)<br /> [ For the state or ruin of + these suburban cities, the banks of the Tyber, &c., see the lively + picture of the P. Labat, (Voyage en Espagne et en Italiæ,) who had long + resided in the neighborhood of Rome, and the more accurate description of + which P. Eschinard (Roma, 1750, in octavo) has added to the topographical + map of Cingolani.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-65" id="linkKnote-65"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 65 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-65">return</a>)<br /> [ Labat (tom. iii. p. 233) + mentions a recent decree of the Roman government, which has severely + mortified the pride and poverty of Tivoli: in civitate Tiburtinâ non + vivitur civiliter.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-66" id="linkKnote-66"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 66 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-66">return</a>)<br /> [ I depart from my usual + method, of quoting only by the date the Annals of Muratori, in + consideration of the critical balance in which he has weighed nine + contemporary writers who mention the battle of Tusculum, (tom. x. p. 42—44.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-67" id="linkKnote-67"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 67 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-67">return</a>)<br /> [ Matthew Paris, p. 345. + This bishop of Winchester was Peter de Rupibus, who occupied the see + thirty-two years, (A.D. 1206—1238.) and is described, by the English + historian, as a soldier and a statesman. (p. 178, 399.)] + </p> + <p> + Ambition is a weed of quick and early vegetation in the vineyard of + Christ. Under the first Christian princes, the chair of St. Peter was + disputed by the votes, the venality, the violence, of a popular election: + the sanctuaries of Rome were polluted with blood; and, from the third to + the twelfth century, the church was distracted by the mischief of frequent + schisms. As long as the final appeal was determined by the civil + magistrate, these mischiefs were transient and local: the merits were + tried by equity or favor; nor could the unsuccessful competitor long + disturb the triumph of his rival. But after the emperors had been divested + of their prerogatives, after a maxim had been established that the vicar + of Christ is amenable to no earthly tribunal, each vacancy of the holy see + might involve Christendom in controversy and war. The claims of the + cardinals and inferior clergy, of the nobles and people, were vague and + litigious: the freedom of choice was overruled by the tumults of a city + that no longer owned or obeyed a superior. On the decease of a pope, two + factions proceeded in different churches to a double election: the number + and weight of votes, the priority of time, the merit of the candidates, + might balance each other: the most respectable of the clergy were divided; + and the distant princes, who bowed before the spiritual throne, could not + distinguish the spurious, from the legitimate, idol. The emperors were + often the authors of the schism, from the political motive of opposing a + friendly to a hostile pontiff; and each of the competitors was reduced to + suffer the insults of his enemies, who were not awed by conscience, and to + purchase the support of his adherents, who were instigated by avarice or + ambition a peaceful and perpetual succession was ascertained by Alexander + the Third, <a href="#linkKnote-68" name="linkKnoteref-68" + id="linkKnoteref-68">68</a> who finally abolished the tumultuary votes of + the clergy and people, and defined the right of election in the sole + college of cardinals. <a href="#linkKnote-69" name="linkKnoteref-69" + id="linkKnoteref-69">69</a> The three orders of bishops, priests, and + deacons, were assimilated to each other by this important privilege; the + parochial clergy of Rome obtained the first rank in the hierarchy: they + were indifferently chosen among the nations of Christendom; and the + possession of the richest benefices, of the most important bishoprics, was + not incompatible with their title and office. The senators of the Catholic + church, the coadjutors and legates of the supreme pontiff, were robed in + purple, the symbol of martyrdom or royalty; they claimed a proud equality + with kings; and their dignity was enhanced by the smallness of their + number, which, till the reign of Leo the Tenth, seldom exceeded twenty or + twenty-five persons. By this wise regulation, all doubt and scandal were + removed, and the root of schism was so effectually destroyed, that in a + period of six hundred years a double choice has only once divided the + unity of the sacred college. But as the concurrence of two thirds of the + votes had been made necessary, the election was often delayed by the + private interest and passions of the cardinals; and while they prolonged + their independent reign, the Christian world was left destitute of a head. + A vacancy of almost three years had preceded the elevation of George the + Tenth, who resolved to prevent the future abuse; and his bull, after some + opposition, has been consecrated in the code of the canon law. <a + href="#linkKnote-70" name="linkKnoteref-70" id="linkKnoteref-70">70</a> + Nine days are allowed for the obsequies of the deceased pope, and the + arrival of the absent cardinals; on the tenth, they are imprisoned, each + with one domestic, in a common apartment or <i>conclave</i>, without any + separation of walls or curtains: a small window is reserved for the + introduction of necessaries; but the door is locked on both sides and + guarded by the magistrates of the city, to seclude them from all + correspondence with the world. If the election be not consummated in three + days, the luxury of their table is contracted to a single dish at dinner + and supper; and after the eighth day, they are reduced to a scanty + allowance of bread, water, and wine. During the vacancy of the holy see, + the cardinals are prohibited from touching the revenues, or assuming, + unless in some rare emergency, the government of the church: all + agreements and promises among the electors are formally annulled; and + their integrity is fortified by their solemn oath and the prayers of the + Catholics. Some articles of inconvenient or superfluous rigor have been + gradually relaxed, but the principle of confinement is vigorous and + entire: they are still urged, by the personal motives of health and + freedom, to accelerate the moment of their deliverance; and the + improvement of ballot or secret votes has wrapped the struggles of the + conclave <a href="#linkKnote-71" name="linkKnoteref-71" + id="linkKnoteref-71">71</a> in the silky veil of charity and politeness. + <a href="#linkKnote-72" name="linkKnoteref-72" id="linkKnoteref-72">72</a> + By these institutions the Romans were excluded from the election of their + prince and bishop; and in the fever of wild and precarious liberty, they + seemed insensible of the loss of this inestimable privilege. The emperor + Lewis of Bavaria revived the example of the great Otho. After some + negotiation with the magistrates, the Roman people were assembled <a + href="#linkKnote-73" name="linkKnoteref-73" id="linkKnoteref-73">73</a> in + the square before St. Peter's: the pope of Avignon, John the + Twenty-second, was deposed: the choice of his successor was ratified by + their consent and applause. They freely voted for a new law, that their + bishop should never be absent more than three months in the year, and two + days' journey from the city; and that if he neglected to return on the + third summons, the public servant should be degraded and dismissed. <a + href="#linkKnote-74" name="linkKnoteref-74" id="linkKnoteref-74">74</a> + But Lewis forgot his own debility and the prejudices of the times: beyond + the precincts of a German camp, his useless phantom was rejected; the + Romans despised their own workmanship; the antipope implored the mercy of + his lawful sovereign; <a href="#linkKnote-75" name="linkKnoteref-75" + id="linkKnoteref-75">75</a> and the exclusive right of the cardinals was + more firmly established by this unseasonable attack. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-68" id="linkKnote-68"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 68 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-68">return</a>)<br /> [ See Mosheim, Institut. + Histor. Ecclesiast. p. 401, 403. Alexander himself had nearly been the + victim of a contested election; and the doubtful merits of Innocent had + only preponderated by the weight of genius and learning which St. Bernard + cast into the scale, (see his life and writings.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-69" id="linkKnote-69"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 69 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-69">return</a>)<br /> [ The origin, titles, + importance, dress, precedency, &c., of the Roman cardinals, are very + ably discussed by Thomassin, (Discipline de l'Eglise, tom. i. p. 1262—1287;) + but their purple is now much faded. The sacred college was raised to the + definite number of seventy-two, to represent, under his vicar, the + disciples of Christ.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-70" id="linkKnote-70"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 70 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-70">return</a>)<br /> [ See the bull of Gregory + X. approbante sacro concilio, in the <i>Sexts</i> of the Canon Law, (l. i. + tit. 6, c. 3,) a supplement to the Decretals, which Boniface VIII. + promulgated at Rome in 1298, and addressed in all the universities of + Europe.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-71" id="linkKnote-71"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 71 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-71">return</a>)<br /> [ The genius of Cardinal + de Retz had a right to paint a conclave, (of 1665,) in which he was a + spectator and an actor, (Mémoires, tom. iv. p. 15—57;) but I am at a + loss to appreciate the knowledge or authority of an anonymous Italian, + whose history (Conclavi de' Pontifici Romani, in 4to. 1667) has been + continued since the reign of Alexander VII. The accidental form of the + work furnishes a lesson, though not an antidote, to ambition. From a + labyrinth of intrigues, we emerge to the adoration of the successful + candidate; but the next page opens with his funeral.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-72" id="linkKnote-72"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 72 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-72">return</a>)<br /> [ The expressions of + Cardinal de Retz are positive and picturesque: On y vecut toujours + ensemble avec le même respect, et la même civilité que l'on observe dans + le cabinet des rois, avec la même politesse qu'on avoit dans la cour de + Henri III., avec la même familiarité que l'on voit dans les colleges; avec + la même modestie, qui se remarque dans les noviciats; et avec la même + charité, du moins en apparence, qui pourroit ètre entre des frères + parfaitement unis.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-73" id="linkKnote-73"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 73 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-73">return</a>)<br /> [ Richiesti per bando + (says John Villani) sanatori di Roma, e 52 del popolo, et capitani de' 25, + e consoli, (<i>consoli?</i>) et 13 buone huomini, uno per rione. Our + knowledge is too imperfect to pronounce how much of this constitution was + temporary, and how much ordinary and permanent. Yet it is faintly + illustrated by the ancient statutes of Rome.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-74" id="linkKnote-74"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 74 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-74">return</a>)<br /> [ Villani (l. x. c. 68—71, + in Muratori, Script. tom. xiii. p. 641—645) relates this law, and + the whole transaction, with much less abhorrence than the prudent + Muratori. Any one conversant with the darker ages must have observed how + much the sense (I mean the nonsense) of superstition is fluctuating and + inconsistent.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-75" id="linkKnote-75"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 75 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-75">return</a>)<br /> [ In the first volume of + the Popes of Avignon, see the second original Life of John XXII. p. 142—145, + the confession of the antipope p. 145—152, and the laborious Knotes + of Baluze, p. 714, 715.] + </p> + <p> + Had the election been always held in the Vatican, the rights of the senate + and people would not have been violated with impunity. But the Romans + forgot, and were forgotten. in the absence of the successors of Gregory + the Seventh, who did not keep as a divine precept their ordinary residence + in the city and diocese. The care of that diocese was less important than + the government of the universal church; nor could the popes delight in a + city in which their authority was always opposed, and their person was + often endangered. From the persecution of the emperors, and the wars of + Italy, they escaped beyond the Alps into the hospitable bosom of France; + from the tumults of Rome they prudently withdrew to live and die in the + more tranquil stations of Anagni, Perugia, Viterbo, and the adjacent + cities. When the flock was offended or impoverished by the absence of the + shepherd, they were recalled by a stern admonition, that St. Peter had + fixed his chair, not in an obscure village, but in the capital of the + world; by a ferocious menace, that the Romans would march in arms to + destroy the place and people that should dare to afford them a retreat. + They returned with timorous obedience; and were saluted with the account + of a heavy debt, of all the losses which their desertion had occasioned, + the hire of lodgings, the sale of provisions, and the various expenses of + servants and strangers who attended the court. <a href="#linkKnote-76" + name="linkKnoteref-76" id="linkKnoteref-76">76</a> After a short interval + of peace, and perhaps of authority, they were again banished by new + tumults, and again summoned by the imperious or respectful invitation of + the senate. In these occasional retreats, the exiles and fugitives of the + Vatican were seldom long, or far, distant from the metropolis; but in the + beginning of the fourteenth century, the apostolic throne was transported, + as it might seem forever, from the Tyber to the Rhône; and the cause of + the transmigration may be deduced from the furious contest between + Boniface the Eighth and the king of France. <a href="#linkKnote-77" + name="linkKnoteref-77" id="linkKnoteref-77">77</a> The spiritual arms of + excommunication and interdict were repulsed by the union of the three + estates, and the privileges of the Gallican church; but the pope was not + prepared against the carnal weapons which Philip the Fair had courage to + employ. As the pope resided at Anagni, without the suspicion of danger, + his palace and person were assaulted by three hundred horse, who had been + secretly levied by William of Nogaret, a French minister, and Sciarra + Colonna, of a noble but hostile family of Rome. The cardinals fled; the + inhabitants of Anagni were seduced from their allegiance and gratitude; + but the dauntless Boniface, unarmed and alone, seated himself in his + chair, and awaited, like the conscript fathers of old, the swords of the + Gauls. Nogaret, a foreign adversary, was content to execute the orders of + his master: by the domestic enmity of Colonna, he was insulted with words + and blows; and during a confinement of three days his life was threatened + by the hardships which they inflicted on the obstinacy which they + provoked. Their strange delay gave time and courage to the adherents of + the church, who rescued him from sacrilegious violence; but his imperious + soul was wounded in the vital part; and Boniface expired at Rome in a + frenzy of rage and revenge. His memory is stained with the glaring vices + of avarice and pride; nor has the courage of a martyr promoted this + ecclesiastical champion to the honors of a saint; a magnanimous sinner, + (say the chronicles of the times,) who entered like a fox, reigned like a + lion, and died like a dog. He was succeeded by Benedict the Eleventh, the + mildest of mankind. Yet he excommunicated the impious emissaries of + Philip, and devoted the city and people of Anagni by a tremendous curse, + whose effects are still visible to the eyes of superstition. <a + href="#linkKnote-78" name="linkKnoteref-78" id="linkKnoteref-78">78</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-76" id="linkKnote-76"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 76 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-76">return</a>)<br /> [ Romani autem non + valentes nec volentes ultra suam celare cupiditatem gravissimam, contra + papam movere cperunt questionem, exigentes ab eo urgentissime omnia quæ + subierant per ejus absentiam damna et jacturas, videlicet in hispitiis + locandis, in mercimoniis, in usuris, in redditibus, in provisionibus, et + in aliis modis innumerabilibus. Quòd cum audisset papa, præcordialiter + ingemuit, et se comperiens <i>muscipulatum</i>, &c., Matt. Paris, p. + 757. For the ordinary history of the popes, their life and death, their + residence and absence, it is enough to refer to the ecclesiastical + annalists, Spondanus and Fleury.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-77" id="linkKnote-77"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 77 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-77">return</a>)<br /> [ Besides the general + historians of the church of Italy and of France, we possess a valuable + treatise composed by a learned friend of Thuanus, which his last and best + editors have published in the appendix (Histoire particulière du grand + Différend entre Boniface VIII et Philippe le Bel, par Pierre du Puis, tom. + vii. P. xi. p. 61—82.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-78" id="linkKnote-78"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 78 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-78">return</a>)<br /> [ It is difficult to know + whether Labat (tom. iv. p. 53—57) be in jest or in earnest, when he + supposes that Anagni still feels the weight of this curse, and that the + cornfields, or vineyards, or olive-trees, are annually blasted by Nature, + the obsequious handmaid of the popes.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkK2HCH0004" id="linkK2HCH0004"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXIX: State Of Rome From The Twelfth Century.—Part IV. + </h2> + <p> + After his decease, the tedious and equal suspense of the conclave was + fixed by the dexterity of the French faction. A specious offer was made + and accepted, that, in the term of forty days, they would elect one of the + three candidates who should be named by their opponents. The archbishop of + Bourdeaux, a furious enemy of his king and country, was the first on the + list; but his ambition was known; and his conscience obeyed the calls of + fortune and the commands of a benefactor, who had been informed by a swift + messenger that the choice of a pope was now in his hands. The terms were + regulated in a private interview; and with such speed and secrecy was the + business transacted, that the unanimous conclave applauded the elevation + of Clement the Fifth. <a href="#linkKnote-79" name="linkKnoteref-79" + id="linkKnoteref-79">79</a> The cardinals of both parties were soon + astonished by a summons to attend him beyond the Alps; from whence, as + they soon discovered, they must never hope to return. He was engaged, by + promise and affection, to prefer the residence of France; and, after + dragging his court through Poitou and Gascony, and devouring, by his + expense, the cities and convents on the road, he finally reposed at + Avignon, <a href="#linkKnote-80" name="linkKnoteref-80" + id="linkKnoteref-80">80</a> which flourished above seventy years <a + href="#linkKnote-81" name="linkKnoteref-81" id="linkKnoteref-81">81</a> + the seat of the Roman pontiff and the metropolis of Christendom. By land, + by sea, by the Rhône, the position of Avignon was on all sides accessible; + the southern provinces of France do not yield to Italy itself; new palaces + arose for the accommodation of the pope and cardinals; and the arts of + luxury were soon attracted by the treasures of the church. They were + already possessed of the adjacent territory, the Venaissin county, <a + href="#linkKnote-82" name="linkKnoteref-82" id="linkKnoteref-82">82</a> a + populous and fertile spot; and the sovereignty of Avignon was afterwards + purchased from the youth and distress of Jane, the first queen of Naples + and countess of Provence, for the inadequate price of fourscore thousand + florins. <a href="#linkKnote-83" name="linkKnoteref-83" + id="linkKnoteref-83">83</a> Under the shadow of a French monarchy, amidst + an obedient people, the popes enjoyed an honorable and tranquil state, to + which they long had been strangers: but Italy deplored their absence; and + Rome, in solitude and poverty, might repent of the ungovernable freedom + which had driven from the Vatican the successor of St. Peter. Her + repentance was tardy and fruitless: after the death of the old members, + the sacred college was filled with French cardinals, <a + href="#linkKnote-84" name="linkKnoteref-84" id="linkKnoteref-84">84</a> + who beheld Rome and Italy with abhorrence and contempt, and perpetuated a + series of national, and even provincial, popes, attached by the most + indissoluble ties to their native country. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-79" id="linkKnote-79"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 79 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-79">return</a>)<br /> [ See, in the Chronicle of + Giovanni Villani, (l. viii. c. 63, 64, 80, in Muratori, tom. xiii.,) the + imprisonment of Boniface VIII., and the election of Clement V., the last + of which, like most anecdotes, is embarrassed with some difficulties.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-80" id="linkKnote-80"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 80 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-80">return</a>)<br /> [ The original lives of + the eight popes of Avignon, Clement V., John XXII., Benedict XI., Clement + VI., Innocent VI., Urban V., Gregory XI., and Clement VII., are published + by Stephen Baluze, (Vitæ Paparum Avenionensium; Paris, 1693, 2 vols. in + 4to.,) with copious and elaborate Knotes, and a second volume of acts and + documents. With the true zeal of an editor and a patriot, he devoutly + justifies or excuses the characters of his countrymen.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-81" id="linkKnote-81"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 81 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-81">return</a>)<br /> [ The exile of Avignon is + compared by the Italians with Babylon, and the Babylonish captivity. Such + furious metaphors, more suitable to the ardor of Petrarch than to the + judgment of Muratori, are gravely refuted in Baluze's preface. The abbé de + Sade is distracted between the love of Petrarch and of his country. Yet he + modestly pleads, that many of the local inconveniences of Avignon are now + removed; and many of the vices against which the poet declaims, had been + imported with the Roman court by the strangers of Italy, (tom. i. p. 23—28.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-82" id="linkKnote-82"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 82 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-82">return</a>)<br /> [ The comtat Venaissin was + ceded to the popes in 1273 by Philip III. king of France, after he had + inherited the dominions of the count of Thoulouse. Forty years before, the + heresy of Count Raymond had given them a pretence of seizure, and they + derived some obscure claim from the xith century to some lands citra + Rhodanum, (Valesii Notitia Galliarum, p. 495, 610. Longuerue, Description + de la France, tom. i. p. 376—381.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-83" id="linkKnote-83"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 83 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-83">return</a>)<br /> [ If a possession of four + centuries were not itself a title, such objections might annul the + bargain; but the purchase money must be refunded, for indeed it was paid. + Civitatem Avenionem emit.... per ejusmodi venditionem pecuniâ redundates, + &c., (iida Vita Clement. VI. in Baluz. tom. i. p. 272. Muratori, + Script. tom. iii. P. ii. p. 565.) The only temptation for Jane and her + second husband was ready money, and without it they could not have + returned to the throne of Naples.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-84" id="linkKnote-84"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 84 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-84">return</a>)<br /> [ Clement V immediately + promoted ten cardinals, nine French and one English, (Vita ivta, p. 63, et + Baluz. p. 625, &c.) In 1331, the pope refused two candidates + recommended by the king of France, quod xx. Cardinales, de quibus xvii. de + regno Franciæ originem traxisse noscuntur in memorato collegio existant, + (Thomassin, Discipline de l'Eglise, tom. i. p. 1281.)] + </p> + <p> + The progress of industry had produced and enriched the Italian republics: + the æra of their liberty is the most flourishing period of population and + agriculture, of manufactures and commerce; and their mechanic labors were + gradually refined into the arts of elegance and genius. But the position + of Rome was less favorable, the territory less fruitful: the character of + the inhabitants was debased by indolence and elated by pride; and they + fondly conceived that the tribute of subjects must forever nourish the + metropolis of the church and empire. This prejudice was encouraged in some + degree by the resort of pilgrims to the shrines of the apostles; and the + last legacy of the popes, the institution of the holy year, <a + href="#linkKnote-85" name="linkKnoteref-85" id="linkKnoteref-85">85</a> + was not less beneficial to the people than to the clergy. Since the loss + of Palestine, the gift of plenary indulgences, which had been applied to + the crusades, remained without an object; and the most valuable treasure + of the church was sequestered above eight years from public circulation. A + new channel was opened by the diligence of Boniface the Eighth, who + reconciled the vices of ambition and avarice; and the pope had sufficient + learning to recollect and revive the secular games which were celebrated + in Rome at the conclusion of every century. To sound without danger the + depth of popular credulity, a sermon was seasonably pronounced, a report + was artfully scattered, some aged witnesses were produced; and on the + first of January of the year thirteen hundred, the church of St. Peter was + crowded with the faithful, who demanded the customary indulgence of the + holy time. The pontiff, who watched and irritated their devout impatience, + was soon persuaded by ancient testimony of the justice of their claim; and + he proclaimed a plenary absolution to all Catholics who, in the course of + that year, and at every similar period, should respectfully visit the + apostolic churches of St. Peter and St. Paul. The welcome sound was + propagated through Christendom; and at first from the nearest provinces of + Italy, and at length from the remote kingdoms of Hungary and Britain, the + highways were thronged with a swarm of pilgrims who sought to expiate + their sins in a journey, however costly or laborious, which was exempt + from the perils of military service. All exceptions of rank or sex, of age + or infirmity, were forgotten in the common transport; and in the streets + and churches many persons were trampled to death by the eagerness of + devotion. The calculation of their numbers could not be easy nor accurate; + and they have probably been magnified by a dexterous clergy, well apprised + of the contagion of example: yet we are assured by a judicious historian, + who assisted at the ceremony, that Rome was never replenished with less + than two hundred thousand strangers; and another spectator has fixed at + two millions the total concourse of the year. A trifling oblation from + each individual would accumulate a royal treasure; and two priests stood + night and day, with rakes in their hands, to collect, without counting, + the heaps of gold and silver that were poured on the altar of St. Paul. <a + href="#linkKnote-86" name="linkKnoteref-86" id="linkKnoteref-86">86</a> It + was fortunately a season of peace and plenty; and if forage was scarce, if + inns and lodgings were extravagantly dear, an inexhaustible supply of + bread and wine, of meat and fish, was provided by the policy of Boniface + and the venal hospitality of the Romans. From a city without trade or + industry, all casual riches will speedily evaporate: but the avarice and + envy of the next generation solicited Clement the Sixth <a + href="#linkKnote-87" name="linkKnoteref-87" id="linkKnoteref-87">87</a> to + anticipate the distant period of the century. The gracious pontiff + complied with their wishes; afforded Rome this poor consolation for his + loss; and justified the change by the name and practice of the Mosaic + Jubilee. <a href="#linkKnote-88" name="linkKnoteref-88" + id="linkKnoteref-88">88</a> His summons was obeyed; and the number, zeal, + and liberality of the pilgrims did not yield to the primitive festival. + But they encountered the triple scourge of war, pestilence, and famine: + many wives and virgins were violated in the castles of Italy; and many + strangers were pillaged or murdered by the savage Romans, no longer + moderated by the presence of their bishops. <a href="#linkKnote-89" + name="linkKnoteref-89" id="linkKnoteref-89">89</a> To the impatience of + the popes we may ascribe the successive reduction to fifty, thirty-three, + and twenty-five years; although the second of these terms is commensurate + with the life of Christ. The profusion of indulgences, the revolt of the + Protestants, and the decline of superstition, have much diminished the + value of the jubilee; yet even the nineteenth and last festival was a year + of pleasure and profit to the Romans; and a philosophic smile will not + disturb the triumph of the priest or the happiness of the people. <a + href="#linkKnote-90" name="linkKnoteref-90" id="linkKnoteref-90">90</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-85" id="linkKnote-85"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 85 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-85">return</a>)<br /> [ Our primitive account is + from Cardinal James Caietan, (Maxima Bibliot. Patrum, tom. xxv.;) and I am + at a loss to determine whether the nephew of Boniface VIII. be a fool or a + knave: the uncle is a much clearer character.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-86" id="linkKnote-86"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 86 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-86">return</a>)<br /> [ See John Villani (l. + viii. c. 36) in the xiith, and the Chronicon Astense, in the xith volume + (p. 191, 192) of Muratori's Collection Papa innumerabilem pecuniam ab + eisdem accepit, nam duo clerici, cum rastris, &c.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-87" id="linkKnote-87"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 87 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-87">return</a>)<br /> [ The two bulls of + Boniface VIII. and Clement VI. are inserted on the Corpus Juris Canonici, + Extravagant. (Commun. l. v. tit. ix c 1, 2.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-88" id="linkKnote-88"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 88 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-88">return</a>)<br /> [ The sabbatic years and + jubilees of the Mosaic law, (Car. Sigon. de Republica Hebræorum, Opp. tom. + iv. l. iii. c. 14, 14, p. 151, 152,) the suspension of all care and labor, + the periodical release of lands, debts, servitude, &c., may seem a + noble idea, but the execution would be impracticable in a <i>profane</i> + republic; and I should be glad to learn that this ruinous festival was + observed by the Jewish people.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-89" id="linkKnote-89"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 89 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-89">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Chronicle of + Matteo Villani, (l. i. c. 56,) in the xivth vol. of Muratori, and the + Mémoires sur la Vie de Pétrarque, tom. iii. p. 75—89.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-90" id="linkKnote-90"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 90 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-90">return</a>)<br /> [ The subject is exhausted + by M. Chais, a French minister at the Hague, in his Lettres Historiques et + Dogmatiques, sur les Jubilés et es Indulgences; la Haye, 1751, 3 vols. in + 12mo.; an elaborate and pleasing work, had not the author preferred the + character of a polemic to that of a philosopher.] + </p> + <p> + In the beginning of the eleventh century, Italy was exposed to the feudal + tyranny, alike oppressive to the sovereign and the people. The rights of + human nature were vindicated by her numerous republics, who soon extended + their liberty and dominion from the city to the adjacent country. The + sword of the nobles was broken; their slaves were enfranchised; their + castles were demolished; they assumed the habits of society and obedience; + their ambition was confined to municipal honors, and in the proudest + aristocracy of Venice on Genoa, each patrician was subject to the laws. <a + href="#linkKnote-91" name="linkKnoteref-91" id="linkKnoteref-91">91</a> + But the feeble and disorderly government of Rome was unequal to the task + of curbing her rebellious sons, who scorned the authority of the + magistrate within and without the walls. It was no longer a civil + contention between the nobles and plebeians for the government of the + state: the barons asserted in arms their personal independence; their + palaces and castles were fortified against a siege; and their private + quarrels were maintained by the numbers of their vassals and retainers. In + origin and affection, they were aliens to their country: <a + href="#linkKnote-92" name="linkKnoteref-92" id="linkKnoteref-92">92</a> + and a genuine Roman, could such have been produced, might have renounced + these haughty strangers, who disdained the appellation of citizens, and + proudly styled themselves the princes, of Rome. <a href="#linkKnote-93" + name="linkKnoteref-93" id="linkKnoteref-93">93</a> After a dark series of + revolutions, all records of pedigree were lost; the distinction of + surnames was abolished; the blood of the nations was mingled in a thousand + channels; and the Goths and Lombards, the Greeks and Franks, the Germans + and Normans, had obtained the fairest possessions by royal bounty, or the + prerogative of valor. These examples might be readily presumed; but the + elevation of a Hebrew race to the rank of senators and consuls is an event + without a parallel in the long captivity of these miserable exiles. <a + href="#linkKnote-94" name="linkKnoteref-94" id="linkKnoteref-94">94</a> In + the time of Leo the Ninth, a wealthy and learned Jew was converted to + Christianity, and honored at his baptism with the name of his godfather, + the reigning Pope. The zeal and courage of Peter the son of Leo were + signalized in the cause of Gregory the Seventh, who intrusted his faithful + adherent with the government of Adrian's mole, the tower of Crescentius, + or, as it is now called, the castle of St. Angelo. Both the father and the + son were the parents of a numerous progeny: their riches, the fruits of + usury, were shared with the noblest families of the city; and so extensive + was their alliance, that the grandson of the proselyte was exalted by the + weight of his kindred to the throne of St. Peter. A majority of the clergy + and people supported his cause: he reigned several years in the Vatican; + and it is only the eloquence of St. Bernard, and the final triumph of + Innocence the Second, that has branded Anacletus with the epithet of + antipope. After his defeat and death, the posterity of Leo is no longer + conspicuous; and none will be found of the modern nobles ambitious of + descending from a Jewish stock. It is not my design to enumerate the Roman + families which have failed at different periods, or those which are + continued in different degrees of splendor to the present time. <a + href="#linkKnote-95" name="linkKnoteref-95" id="linkKnoteref-95">95</a> + The old consular line of the <i>Frangipani</i> discover their name in the + generous act of <i>breaking</i> or dividing bread in a time of famine; and + such benevolence is more truly glorious than to have enclosed, with their + allies the <i>Corsi</i>, a spacious quarter of the city in the chains of + their fortifications; the <i>Savelli</i>, as it should seem a Sabine race, + have maintained their original dignity; the obsolete surname of the <i>Capizucchi</i> + is inscribed on the coins of the first senators; the <i>Conti</i> preserve + the honor, without the estate, of the counts of Signia; and the <i>Annibaldi</i> + must have been very ignorant, or very modest, if they had not descended + from the Carthaginian hero. <a href="#linkKnote-96" name="linkKnoteref-96" + id="linkKnoteref-96">96</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-91" id="linkKnote-91"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 91 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-91">return</a>)<br /> [ Muratori (Dissert. + xlvii.) alleges the Annals of Florence, Padua, Genoa, &c., the analogy + of the rest, the evidence of Otho of Frisingen, (de Gest. Fred. I. l. ii. + c. 13,) and the submission of the marquis of Este.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-92" id="linkKnote-92"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 92 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-92">return</a>)<br /> [ As early as the year + 824, the emperor Lothaire I. found it expedient to interrogate the Roman + people, to learn from each individual by what national law he chose to be + governed. (Muratori, Dissertat xxii.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-93" id="linkKnote-93"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 93 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-93">return</a>)<br /> [ Petrarch attacks these + foreigners, the tyrants of Rome, in a declamation or epistle, full of bold + truths and absurd pedantry, in which he applies the maxims, and even + prejudices, of the old republic to the state of the xivth century, + (Mémoires, tom. iii. p. 157—169.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-94" id="linkKnote-94"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 94 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-94">return</a>)<br /> [ The origin and + adventures of the Jewish family are noticed by Pagi, (Critica, tom. iv. p. + 435, A.D. 1124, No. 3, 4,) who draws his information from the + Chronographus Maurigniacensis, and Arnulphus Sagiensis de Schismate, (in + Muratori, Script. Ital. tom. iii. P. i. p. 423—432.) The fact must + in some degree be true; yet I could wish that it had been coolly related, + before it was turned into a reproach against the antipope.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-95" id="linkKnote-95"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 95 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-95">return</a>)<br /> [ Muratori has given two + dissertations (xli. and xlii.) to the names, surnames, and families of + Italy. Some nobles, who glory in their domestic fables, may be offended + with his firm and temperate criticism; yet surely some ounces of pure gold + are of more value than many pounds of base metal.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-96" id="linkKnote-96"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 96 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-96">return</a>)<br /> [ The cardinal of St. + George, in his poetical, or rather metrical history of the election and + coronation of Boniface VIII., (Muratori Script. Ital. tom. iii. P. i. p. + 641, &c.,) describes the state and families of Rome at the coronation + of Boniface VIII., (A.D. 1295.) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Interea titulis redimiti sanguine et armis + Illustresque viri Romanâ a stirpe trahentes + Nomen in emeritos tantæ virtutis honores + Insulerant sese medios festumque colebant + Aurata fulgente togâ, sociante catervâ. + Ex ipsis devota domus præstantis ab <i>Ursâ</i> + Ecclesiæ, vultumque gerens demissius altum + Festa <i>Columna</i> jocis, necnon <i>Sabellia</i> mitis; + Stephanides senior, <i>Comites</i>, <i>Annibalica</i> proles, + Præfectusque urbis magnum sine viribus nomen. + (l. ii. c. 5, 100, p. 647, 648.) +</pre> + <p class="foot"> + The ancient statutes of Rome (l. iii. c. 59, p. 174, 175) distinguish + eleven families of barons, who are obliged to swear in concilio communi, + before the senator, that they would not harbor or protect any malefactors, + outlaws, &c.—a feeble security!] + </p> + <p> + But among, perhaps above, the peers and princes of the city, I distinguish + the rival houses of Colonna and Ursini, whose private story is an + essential part of the annals of modern Rome. I. The name and arms of + Colonna <a href="#linkKnote-97" name="linkKnoteref-97" id="linkKnoteref-97">97</a> + have been the theme of much doubtful etymology; nor have the orators and + antiquarians overlooked either Trajan's pillar, or the columns of + Hercules, or the pillar of Christ's flagellation, or the luminous column + that guided the Israelites in the desert. Their first historical + appearance in the year eleven hundred and four attests the power and + antiquity, while it explains the simple meaning, of the name. By the + usurpation of Cavæ, the Colonna provoked the arms of Paschal the Second; + but they lawfully held in the Campagna of Rome the hereditary fiefs of + Zagarola and <i>Colonna</i>; and the latter of these towns was probably + adorned with some lofty pillar, the relic of a villa or temple. <a + href="#linkKnote-98" name="linkKnoteref-98" id="linkKnoteref-98">98</a> + They likewise possessed one moiety of the neighboring city of Tusculum, a + strong presumption of their descent from the counts of Tusculum, who in + the tenth century were the tyrants of the apostolic see. According to + their own and the public opinion, the primitive and remote source was + derived from the banks of the Rhine; <a href="#linkKnote-99" + name="linkKnoteref-99" id="linkKnoteref-99">99</a> and the sovereigns of + Germany were not ashamed of a real or fabulous affinity with a noble race, + which in the revolutions of seven hundred years has been often illustrated + by merit and always by fortune. <a href="#linkKnote-100" + name="linkKnoteref-100" id="linkKnoteref-100">100</a> About the end of the + thirteenth century, the most powerful branch was composed of an uncle and + six bothers, all conspicuous in arms, or in the honors of the church. Of + these, Peter was elected senator of Rome, introduced to the Capitol in a + triumphal car, and hailed in some vain acclamations with the title of + Cæsar; while John and Stephen were declared marquis of Ancona and count of + Romagna, by Nicholas the Fourth, a patron so partial to their family, that + he has been delineated in satirical portraits, imprisoned as it were in a + hollow pillar. <a href="#linkKnote-101" name="linkKnoteref-101" + id="linkKnoteref-101">101</a> After his decease their haughty behavior + provoked the displeasure of the most implacable of mankind. The two + cardinals, the uncle and the nephew, denied the election of Boniface the + Eighth; and the Colonna were oppressed for a moment by his temporal and + spiritual arms. <a href="#linkKnote-102" name="linkKnoteref-102" + id="linkKnoteref-102">102</a> He proclaimed a crusade against his personal + enemies; their estates were confiscated; their fortresses on either side + of the Tyber were besieged by the troops of St. Peter and those of the + rival nobles; and after the ruin of Palestrina or Præneste, their + principal seat, the ground was marked with a ploughshare, the emblem of + perpetual desolation. Degraded, banished, proscribed, the six brothers, in + disguise and danger, wandered over Europe without renouncing the hope of + deliverance and revenge. In this double hope, the French court was their + surest asylum; they prompted and directed the enterprise of Philip; and I + should praise their magnanimity, had they respected the misfortune and + courage of the captive tyrant. His civil acts were annulled by the Roman + people, who restored the honors and possessions of the Colonna; and some + estimate may be formed of their wealth by their losses, of their losses by + the damages of one hundred thousand gold florins which were granted them + against the accomplices and heirs of the deceased pope. All the spiritual + censures and disqualifications were abolished <a href="#linkKnote-103" + name="linkKnoteref-103" id="linkKnoteref-103">103</a> by his prudent + successors; and the fortune of the house was more firmly established by + this transient hurricane. The boldness of Sciarra Colonna was signalized + in the captivity of Boniface, and long afterwards in the coronation of + Lewis of Bavaria; and by the gratitude of the emperor, the pillar in their + arms was encircled with a royal crown. But the first of the family in fame + and merit was the elder Stephen, whom Petrarch loved and esteemed as a + hero superior to his own times, and not unworthy of ancient Rome. + Persecution and exile displayed to the nations his abilities in peace and + war; in his distress he was an object, not of pity, but of reverence; the + aspect of danger provoked him to avow his name and country; and when he + was asked, "Where is now your fortress?" he laid his hand on his heart, + and answered, "Here." He supported with the same virtue the return of + prosperity; and, till the ruin of his declining age, the ancestors, the + character, and the children of Stephen Colonna, exalted his dignity in the + Roman republic, and at the court of Avignon. II. The Ursini migrated from + Spoleto; <a href="#linkKnote-104" name="linkKnoteref-104" + id="linkKnoteref-104">104</a> the sons of Ursus, as they are styled in the + twelfth century, from some eminent person, who is only known as the father + of their race. But they were soon distinguished among the nobles of Rome, + by the number and bravery of their kinsmen, the strength of their towers, + the honors of the senate and sacred college, and the elevation of two + popes, Celestin the Third and Nicholas the Third, of their name and + lineage. <a href="#linkKnote-105" name="linkKnoteref-105" + id="linkKnoteref-105">105</a> Their riches may be accused as an early + abuse of nepotism: the estates of St. Peter were alienated in their favor + by the liberal Celestin; <a href="#linkKnote-106" name="linkKnoteref-106" + id="linkKnoteref-106">106</a> and Nicholas was ambitious for their sake to + solicit the alliance of monarchs; to found new kingdoms in Lombardy and + Tuscany; and to invest them with the perpetual office of senators of Rome. + All that has been observed of the greatness of the Colonna will likewise + redound to the glory of the Ursini, their constant and equal antagonists + in the long hereditary feud, which distracted above two hundred and fifty + years the ecclesiastical state. The jealously of preeminence and power was + the true ground of their quarrel; but as a specious badge of distinction, + the Colonna embraced the name of Ghibelines and the party of the empire; + the Ursini espoused the title of Guelphs and the cause of the church. The + eagle and the keys were displayed in their adverse banners; and the two + factions of Italy most furiously raged when the origin and nature of the + dispute were long since forgotten. <a href="#linkKnote-107" + name="linkKnoteref-107" id="linkKnoteref-107">107</a> After the retreat of + the popes to Avignon they disputed in arms the vacant republic; and the + mischiefs of discord were perpetuated by the wretched compromise of + electing each year two rival senators. By their private hostilities the + city and country were desolated, and the fluctuating balance inclined with + their alternate success. But none of either family had fallen by the + sword, till the most renowned champion of the Ursini was surprised and + slain by the younger Stephen Colonna. <a href="#linkKnote-108" + name="linkKnoteref-108" id="linkKnoteref-108">108</a> His triumph is + stained with the reproach of violating the truce; their defeat was basely + avenged by the assassination, before the church door, of an innocent boy + and his two servants. Yet the victorious Colonna, with an annual + colleague, was declared senator of Rome during the term of five years. And + the muse of Petrarch inspired a wish, a hope, a prediction, that the + generous youth, the son of his venerable hero, would restore Rome and + Italy to their pristine glory; that his justice would extirpate the wolves + and lions, the serpents and <i>bears</i>, who labored to subvert the + eternal basis of the marble column. <a href="#linkKnote-109" + name="linkKnoteref-109" id="linkKnoteref-109">109</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-97" id="linkKnote-97"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 97 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-97">return</a>)<br /> [ It is pity that the + Colonna themselves have not favored the world with a complete and critical + history of their illustrious house. I adhere to Muratori, (Dissert. xlii. + tom. iii. p. 647, 648.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-98" id="linkKnote-98"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 98 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-98">return</a>)<br /> [ Pandulph. Pisan. in Vit. + Paschal. II. in Muratori, Script. Ital. tom. iii. P. i. p. 335. The family + has still great possessions in the Campagna of Rome; but they have + alienated to the Rospigliosi this original fief of <i>Colonna</i>, + (Eschinard, p. 258, 259.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-99" id="linkKnote-99"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 99 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-99">return</a>)<br /> [ "Te longinqua dedit + tellus et pascua Rheni," says Petrarch; and, in 1417, a duke of Guelders + and Juliers acknowledges (Lenfant, Hist. du Concile de Constance, tom. ii. + p. 539) his descent from the ancestors of Martin V., (Otho Colonna:) but + the royal author of the Memoirs of Brandenburg observes, that the sceptre + in his arms has been confounded with the column. To maintain the Roman + origin of the Colonna, it was ingeniously supposed (Diario di Monaldeschi, + in the Script. Ital. tom. xii. p. 533) that a cousin of the emperor Nero + escaped from the city, and founded Mentz in Germany.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-100" id="linkKnote-100"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 100 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-100">return</a>)<br /> [ I cannot overlook the + Roman triumph of ovation on Marce Antonio Colonna, who had commanded the + pope's galleys at the naval victory of Lepanto, (Thuan. Hist. l. 7, tom. + iii. p. 55, 56. Muret. Oratio x. Opp. tom. i. p. 180—190.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-101" id="linkKnote-101"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 101 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-101">return</a>)<br /> [ Muratori, Annali + d'Italia, tom. x. p. 216, 220.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-102" id="linkKnote-102"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 102 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-102">return</a>)<br /> [ Petrarch's attachment + to the Colonna has authorized the abbé de Sade to expatiate on the state + of the family in the fourteenth century, the persecution of Boniface + VIII., the character of Stephen and his sons, their quarrels with the + Ursini, &c., (Mémoires sur Pétrarque, tom. i. p. 98—110, 146—148, + 174—176, 222—230, 275—280.) His criticism often + rectifies the hearsay stories of Villani, and the errors of the less + diligent moderns. I understand the branch of Stephen to be now extinct.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-103" id="linkKnote-103"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 103 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-103">return</a>)<br /> [ Alexander III. had + declared the Colonna who adhered to the emperor Frederic I. incapable of + holding any ecclesiastical benefice, (Villani, l. v. c. 1;) and the last + stains of annual excommunication were purified by Sixtus V., (Vita di + Sisto V. tom. iii. p. 416.) Treason, sacrilege, and proscription are often + the best titles of ancient nobility.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-104" id="linkKnote-104"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 104 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-104">return</a>)<br /> [ + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + ————Vallis te proxima misit, + Appenninigenæ qua prata virentia sylvæ + Spoletana metunt armenta gregesque protervi. +</pre> + <p class="foot"> + Monaldeschi (tom. xii. Script. Ital. p. 533) gives the Ursini a French + origin, which may be remotely true.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-105" id="linkKnote-105"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 105 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-105">return</a>)<br /> [ In the metrical life + of Celestine V. by the cardinal of St. George (Muratori, tom. iii. P. i. + p. 613, &c.,) we find a luminous, and not inelegant, passage, (l. i. + c. 3, p. 203 &c.:)— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + ————genuit quem nobilis Ursæ (<i>Ursi?</i>) + Progenies, Romana domus, veterataque magnis + Fascibus in clero, pompasque experta senatûs, + Bellorumque manû grandi stipata parentum + Cardineos apices necnon fastigia dudum + Papatûs <i>iterata</i> tenens. +</pre> + <p class="foot"> + Muratori (Dissert. xlii. tom. iii.) observes, that the first Ursini + pontificate of Celestine III. was unknown: he is inclined to read <i>Ursi</i> + progenies.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-106" id="linkKnote-106"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 106 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-106">return</a>)<br /> [ Filii Ursi, quondam + Clestini papæ nepotes, de bonis ecclesiæ Romanæ ditati, (Vit. Innocent. + III. in Muratori, Script. tom. iii. P. i.) The partial prodigality of + Nicholas III. is more conspicuous in Villani and Muratori. Yet the Ursini + would disdain the nephews of a <i>modern</i> pope.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-107" id="linkKnote-107"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 107 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-107">return</a>)<br /> [ In his fifty-first + Dissertation on the Italian Antiquities, Muratori explains the factions of + the Guelphs and Ghibelines.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-108" id="linkKnote-108"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 108 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-108">return</a>)<br /> [ Petrarch (tom. i. p. + 222—230) has celebrated this victory according to the Colonna; but + two contemporaries, a Florentine (Giovanni Villani, l. x. c. 220) and a + Roman, (Ludovico Monaldeschi, p. 532—534,) are less favorable to + their arms.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkKnote-109" id="linkKnote-109"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 109 (<a href="#linkKnoteref-109">return</a>)<br /> [ The abbé de Sade (tom. + i. Notes, p. 61—66) has applied the vith Canzone of Petrarch, <i>Spirto + Gentil</i>, &c., to Stephen Colonna the younger: + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Orsi, lupi, leoni, aquile e serpi + Al una gran marmorea <i>colexna</i> + Fanno noja sovente e à se danno.] +</pre> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> ==================== <a name="linkL2HCH0001" id="linkL2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + Chapter LXX: Final Settlement Of The Ecclesiastical State.—Part I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Character And Coronation Of Petrarch.—Restoration Of The + Freedom And Government Of Rome By The Tribune Rienzi.—His + Virtues And Vices, His Expulsion And Death.—Return Of The + Popes From Avignon.—Great Schism Of The West.—Reunion Of + The Latin Church.—Last Struggles Of Roman Liberty.— + Statutes Of Rome.—Final Settlement Of The Ecclesiastical + State. +</pre> + <p> + In the apprehension of modern times, Petrarch <a href="#linkLnote-1" + name="linkLnoteref-1" id="linkLnoteref-1">1</a> is the Italian songster of + Laura and love. In the harmony of his Tuscan rhymes, Italy applauds, or + rather adores, the father of her lyric poetry; and his verse, or at least + his name, is repeated by the enthusiasm, or affectation, of amorous + sensibility. Whatever may be the private taste of a stranger, his slight + and superficial knowledge should humbly acquiesce in the judgment of a + learned nation; yet I may hope or presume, that the Italians do not + compare the tedious uniformity of sonnets and elegies with the sublime + compositions of their epic muse, the original wildness of Dante, the + regular beauties of Tasso, and the boundless variety of the incomparable + Ariosto. The merits of the lover I am still less qualified to appreciate: + nor am I deeply interested in a metaphysical passion for a nymph so + shadowy, that her existence has been questioned; <a href="#linkLnote-2" + name="linkLnoteref-2" id="linkLnoteref-2">2</a> for a matron so prolific, + <a href="#linkLnote-3" name="linkLnoteref-3" id="linkLnoteref-3">3</a> + that she was delivered of eleven legitimate children, <a + href="#linkLnote-4" name="linkLnoteref-4" id="linkLnoteref-4">4</a> while + her amorous swain sighed and sung at the fountain of Vaucluse. <a + href="#linkLnote-5" name="linkLnoteref-5" id="linkLnoteref-5">5</a> But in + the eyes of Petrarch, and those of his graver contemporaries, his love was + a sin, and Italian verse a frivolous amusement. His Latin works of + philosophy, poetry, and eloquence, established his serious reputation, + which was soon diffused from Avignon over France and Italy: his friends + and disciples were multiplied in every city; and if the ponderous volume + of his writings <a href="#linkLnote-6" name="linkLnoteref-6" + id="linkLnoteref-6">6</a> be now abandoned to a long repose, our gratitude + must applaud the man, who by precept and example revived the spirit and + study of the Augustan age. From his earliest youth, Petrarch aspired to + the poetic crown. The academical honors of the three faculties had + introduced a royal degree of master or doctor in the art of poetry; <a + href="#linkLnote-7" name="linkLnoteref-7" id="linkLnoteref-7">7</a> and + the title of poet-laureate, which custom, rather than vanity, perpetuates + in the English court, <a href="#linkLnote-8" name="linkLnoteref-8" + id="linkLnoteref-8">8</a> was first invented by the Cæsars of Germany. In + the musical games of antiquity, a prize was bestowed on the victor: <a + href="#linkLnote-9" name="linkLnoteref-9" id="linkLnoteref-9">9</a> the + belief that Virgil and Horace had been crowned in the Capitol inflamed the + emulation of a Latin bard; <a href="#linkLnote-10" name="linkLnoteref-10" + id="linkLnoteref-10">10</a> and the laurel <a href="#linkLnote-11" + name="linkLnoteref-11" id="linkLnoteref-11">11</a> was endeared to the + lover by a verbal resemblance with the name of his mistress. The value of + either object was enhanced by the difficulties of the pursuit; and if the + virtue or prudence of Laura was inexorable, <a href="#linkLnote-12" + name="linkLnoteref-12" id="linkLnoteref-12">12</a> he enjoyed, and might + boast of enjoying, the nymph of poetry. His vanity was not of the most + delicate kind, since he applauds the success of his own <i>labors</i>; his + name was popular; his friends were active; the open or secret opposition + of envy and prejudice was surmounted by the dexterity of patient merit. In + the thirty-sixth year of his age, he was solicited to accept the object of + his wishes; and on the same day, in the solitude of Vaucluse, he received + a similar and solemn invitation from the senate of Rome and the university + of Paris. The learning of a theological school, and the ignorance of a + lawless city, were alike unqualified to bestow the ideal though immortal + wreath which genius may obtain from the free applause of the public and of + posterity: but the candidate dismissed this troublesome reflection; and + after some moments of complacency and suspense, preferred the summons of + the metropolis of the world. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-1" id="linkLnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ The Mémoires sur la Vie de + François Pétrarque, (Amsterdam, 1764, 1767, 3 vols. in 4to.,) form a + copious, original, and entertaining work, a labor of love, composed from + the accurate study of Petrarch and his contemporaries; but the hero is too + often lost in the general history of the age, and the author too often + languishes in the affectation of politeness and gallantry. In the preface + to his first volume, he enumerates and weighs twenty Italian biographers, + who have professedly treated of the same subject.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-2" id="linkLnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ The allegorical + interpretation prevailed in the xvth century; but the wise commentators + were not agreed whether they should understand by Laura, religion, or + virtue, or the blessed virgin, or————. See the + prefaces to the first and second volume.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-3" id="linkLnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ Laure de Noves, born about + the year 1307, was married in January 1325, to Hugues de Sade, a noble + citizen of Avignon, whose jealousy was not the effect of love, since he + married a second wife within seven months of her death, which happened the + 6th of April, 1348, precisely one-and-twenty years after Petrarch had seen + and loved her.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-4" id="linkLnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ Corpus crebris partubus + exhaustum: from one of these is issued, in the tenth degree, the abbé de + Sade, the fond and grateful biographer of Petrarch; and this domestic + motive most probably suggested the idea of his work, and urged him to + inquire into every circumstance that could affect the history and + character of his grandmother, (see particularly tom. i. p. 122—133, + Notes, p. 7—58, tom. ii. p. 455—495 not. p. 76—82.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-5" id="linkLnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ Vaucluse, so familiar to + our English travellers, is described from the writings of Petrarch, and + the local knowledge of his biographer, (Mémoires, tom. i. p. 340—359.) + It was, in truth, the retreat of a hermit; and the moderns are much + mistaken, if they place Laura and a happy lover in the grotto.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-6" id="linkLnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ Of 1250 pages, in a close + print, at Basil in the xvith century, but without the date of the year. + The abbé de Sade calls aloud for a new edition of Petrarch's Latin works; + but I much doubt whether it would redound to the profit of the bookseller, + or the amusement of the public.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-7" id="linkLnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ Consult Selden's Titles of + Honor, in his works, (vol. iii. p. 457—466.) A hundred years before + Petrarch, St. Francis received the visit of a poet, qui ab imperatore + fuerat coronatus et exinde rex versuum dictus.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-8" id="linkLnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ From Augustus to Louis, + the muse has too often been false and venal: but I much doubt whether any + age or court can produce a similar establishment of a stipendiary poet, + who in every reign, and at all events, is bound to furnish twice a year a + measure of praise and verse, such as may be sung in the chapel, and, I + believe, in the presence, of the sovereign. I speak the more freely, as + the best time for abolishing this ridiculous custom is while the prince is + a man of virtue and the poet a man of genius.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-9" id="linkLnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ Isocrates (in Panegyrico, + tom. i. p. 116, 117, edit. Battie, Cantab. 1729) claims for his native + Athens the glory of first instituting and recommending the alwnaV—kai + ta aqla megista—mh monon tacouV kai rwmhV, alla kai logwn kai + gnwmhV. The example of the Panathenæa was imitated at Delphi; but the + Olympic games were ignorant of a musical crown, till it was extorted by + the vain tyranny of Nero, (Sueton. in Nerone, c. 23; Philostrat. apud + Casaubon ad locum; Dion Cassius, or Xiphilin, l. lxiii. p. 1032, 1041. + Potter's Greek Antiquities, vol. i. p. 445, 450.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-10" id="linkLnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ The Capitoline games + (certamen quinquenale, <i>musicum</i>, equestre, gymnicum) were instituted + by Domitian (Sueton. c. 4) in the year of Christ 86, (Censorin. de Die + Natali, c. 18, p. 100, edit. Havercamp.) and were not abolished in the + ivth century, (Ausonius de Professoribus Burdegal. V.) If the crown were + given to superior merit, the exclusion of Statius (Capitolia nostræ + inficiata lyræ, Sylv. l. iii. v. 31) may do honor to the games of the + Capitol; but the Latin poets who lived before Domitian were crowned only + in the public opinion.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-11" id="linkLnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ Petrarch and the + senators of Rome were ignorant that the laurel was not the Capitoline, but + the Delphic crown, (Plin. Hist. Natur p. 39. Hist. Critique de la + République des Lettres, tom. i. p. 150—220.) The victors in the + Capitol were crowned with a garland of oak leaves, (Martial, l. iv. epigram + 54.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-12" id="linkLnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ The pious grandson of + Laura has labored, and not without success, to vindicate her immaculate + chastity against the censures of the grave and the sneers of the profane, + (tom. ii. Notes, p. 76—82.)] + </p> + <p> + The ceremony of his coronation <a href="#linkLnote-13" + name="linkLnoteref-13" id="linkLnoteref-13">13</a> was performed in the + Capitol, by his friend and patron the supreme magistrate of the republic. + Twelve patrician youths were arrayed in scarlet; six representatives of + the most illustrious families, in green robes, with garlands of flowers, + accompanied the procession; in the midst of the princes and nobles, the + senator, count of Anguillara, a kinsman of the Colonna, assumed his + throne; and at the voice of a herald Petrarch arose. After discoursing on + a text of Virgil, and thrice repeating his vows for the prosperity of + Rome, he knelt before the throne, and received from the senator a laurel + crown, with a more precious declaration, "This is the reward of merit." + The people shouted, "Long life to the Capitol and the poet!" A sonnet in + praise of Rome was accepted as the effusion of genius and gratitude; and + after the whole procession had visited the Vatican, the profane wreath was + suspended before the shrine of St. Peter. In the act or diploma <a + href="#linkLnote-14" name="linkLnoteref-14" id="linkLnoteref-14">14</a> + which was presented to Petrarch, the title and prerogatives of + poet-laureate are revived in the Capitol, after the lapse of thirteen + hundred years; and he receives the perpetual privilege of wearing, at his + choice, a crown of laurel, ivy, or myrtle, of assuming the poetic habit, + and of teaching, disputing, interpreting, and composing, in all places + whatsoever, and on all subjects of literature. The grant was ratified by + the authority of the senate and people; and the character of citizen was + the recompense of his affection for the Roman name. They did him honor, + but they did him justice. In the familiar society of Cicero and Livy, he + had imbibed the ideas of an ancient patriot; and his ardent fancy kindled + every idea to a sentiment, and every sentiment to a passion. The aspect of + the seven hills and their majestic ruins confirmed these lively + impressions; and he loved a country by whose liberal spirit he had been + crowned and adopted. The poverty and debasement of Rome excited the + indignation and pity of her grateful son; he dissembled the faults of his + fellow-citizens; applauded with partial fondness the last of their heroes + and matrons; and in the remembrance of the past, in the hopes of the + future, was pleased to forget the miseries of the present time. Rome was + still the lawful mistress of the world: the pope and the emperor, the + bishop and general, had abdicated their station by an inglorious retreat + to the Rhône and the Danube; but if she could resume her virtue, the + republic might again vindicate her liberty and dominion. Amidst the + indulgence of enthusiasm and eloquence, <a href="#linkLnote-15" + name="linkLnoteref-15" id="linkLnoteref-15">15</a> Petrarch, Italy, and + Europe, were astonished by a revolution which realized for a moment his + most splendid visions. The rise and fall of the tribune Rienzi will occupy + the following pages: <a href="#linkLnote-16" name="linkLnoteref-16" + id="linkLnoteref-16">16</a> the subject is interesting, the materials are + rich, and the glance of a patriot bard <a href="#linkLnote-17" + name="linkLnoteref-17" id="linkLnoteref-17">17</a> will sometimes vivify + the copious, but simple, narrative of the Florentine, <a + href="#linkLnote-18" name="linkLnoteref-18" id="linkLnoteref-18">18</a> + and more especially of the Roman, historian. <a href="#linkLnote-19" + name="linkLnoteref-19" id="linkLnoteref-19">19</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-13" id="linkLnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ The whole process of + Petrarch's coronation is accurately described by the abbé de Sade, (tom. + i. p. 425—435, tom. ii. p. 1—6, Notes, p. 1—13,) from + his own writings, and the Roman diary of Ludovico Monaldeschi, without + mixing in this authentic narrative the more recent fables of Sannuccio + Delbene.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-14" id="linkLnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ The original act is + printed among the Pieces Justificatives in the Mémoires sur Pétrarque, + tom. iii. p. 50—53.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-15" id="linkLnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ To find the proofs of + his enthusiasm for Rome, I need only request that the reader would open, + by chance, either Petrarch, or his French biographer. The latter has + described the poet's first visit to Rome, (tom. i. p. 323—335.) But + in the place of much idle rhetoric and morality, Petrarch might have + amused the present and future age with an original account of the city and + his coronation.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-16" id="linkLnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ It has been treated by + the pen of a Jesuit, the P. de Cerceau whose posthumous work (Conjuration + de Nicolas Gabrini, dit de Rienzi, Tyran de Rome, en 1347) was published + at Paris, 1748, in 12mo. I am indebted to him for some facts and documents + in John Hocsemius, canon of Liege, a contemporary historian, (Fabricius + Bibliot. Lat. Med. Ævi, tom. iii. p. 273, tom. iv. p. 85.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-17" id="linkLnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ The abbé de Sade, who so + freely expatiates on the history of the xivth century, might treat, as his + proper subject, a revolution in which the heart of Petrarch was so deeply + engaged, (Mémoires, tom. ii. p. 50, 51, 320—417, Notes, p. 70—76, + tom. iii. p. 221—243, 366—375.) Not an idea or a fact in the + writings of Petrarch has probably escaped him.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-18" id="linkLnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ Giovanni Villani, l. + xii. c. 89, 104, in Muratori, Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, tom. xiii. p. + 969, 970, 981—983.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-19" id="linkLnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ In his third volume of + Italian antiquities, (p. 249—548,) Muratori has inserted the + Fragmenta Historiæ Romanæ ab Anno 1327 usque ad Annum 1354, in the + original dialect of Rome or Naples in the xivth century, and a Latin + version for the benefit of strangers. It contains the most particular and + authentic life of Cola (Nicholas) di Rienzi; which had been printed at + Bracciano, 1627, in 4to., under the name of Tomaso Fortifiocca, who is + only mentioned in this work as having been punished by the tribune for + forgery. Human nature is scarcely capable of such sublime or stupid + impartiality: but whosoever in the author of these Fragments, he wrote on + the spot and at the time, and paints, without design or art, the manners + of Rome and the character of the tribune. * Note: Since the publication of + my first edition of Gibbon, some new and very remarkable documents have + been brought to light in a life of Nicolas Rienzi,—Cola di Rienzo + und seine Zeit,—by Dr. Felix Papencordt. The most important of these + documents are letters from Rienzi to Charles the Fourth, emperor and king + of Bohemia, and to the archbishop of Prague; they enter into the whole + history of his adventurous career during its first period, and throw a + strong light upon his extraordinary character. These documents were first + discovered and made use of, to a certain extent, by Pelzel, the historian + of Bohemia. The originals have disappeared, but a copy made by Pelzel for + his own use is now in the library of Count Thun at Teschen. There seems no + doubt of their authenticity. Dr. Papencordt has printed the whole in his + Urkunden, with the exception of one long theological paper.—M. + 1845.] + </p> + <p> + In a quarter of the city which was inhabited only by mechanics and Jews, + the marriage of an innkeeper and a washer woman produced the future + deliverer of Rome. <a href="#linkLnote-20" name="linkLnoteref-20" + id="linkLnoteref-20">20</a> <a href="#linkLnote-201" + name="linkLnoteref-201" id="linkLnoteref-201">201</a> From such parents + Nicholas Rienzi Gabrini could inherit neither dignity nor fortune; and the + gift of a liberal education, which they painfully bestowed, was the cause + of his glory and untimely end. The study of history and eloquence, the + writings of Cicero, Seneca, Livy, Cæsar, and Valerius Maximus, elevated + above his equals and contemporaries the genius of the young plebeian: he + perused with indefatigable diligence the manuscripts and marbles of + antiquity; loved to dispense his knowledge in familiar language; and was + often provoked to exclaim, "Where are now these Romans? their virtue, + their justice, their power? why was I not born in those happy times?" <a + href="#linkLnote-21" name="linkLnoteref-21" id="linkLnoteref-21">21</a> + When the republic addressed to the throne of Avignon an embassy of the + three orders, the spirit and eloquence of Rienzi recommended him to a + place among the thirteen deputies of the commons. The orator had the honor + of haranguing Pope Clement the Sixth, and the satisfaction of conversing + with Petrarch, a congenial mind: but his aspiring hopes were chilled by + disgrace and poverty and the patriot was reduced to a single garment and + the charity of the hospital. <a href="#linkLnote-211" + name="linkLnoteref-211" id="linkLnoteref-211">211</a> From this misery he + was relieved by the sense of merit or the smile of favor; and the + employment of apostolic notary afforded him a daily stipend of five gold + florins, a more honorable and extensive connection, and the right of + contrasting, both in words and actions, his own integrity with the vices + of the state. The eloquence of Rienzi was prompt and persuasive: the + multitude is always prone to envy and censure: he was stimulated by the + loss of a brother and the impunity of the assassins; nor was it possible + to excuse or exaggerate the public calamities. The blessings of peace and + justice, for which civil society has been instituted, were banished from + Rome: the jealous citizens, who might have endured every personal or + pecuniary injury, were most deeply wounded in the dishonor of their wives + and daughters: <a href="#linkLnote-22" name="linkLnoteref-22" + id="linkLnoteref-22">22</a> they were equally oppressed by the arrogance + of the nobles and the corruption of the magistrates; <a + href="#linkLnote-221" name="linkLnoteref-221" id="linkLnoteref-221">221</a> + and the abuse of arms or of laws was the only circumstance that + distinguished the lions from the dogs and serpents of the Capitol. These + allegorical emblems were variously repeated in the pictures which Rienzi + exhibited in the streets and churches; and while the spectators gazed with + curious wonder, the bold and ready orator unfolded the meaning, applied + the satire, inflamed their passions, and announced a distant hope of + comfort and deliverance. The privileges of Rome, her eternal sovereignty + over her princes and provinces, was the theme of his public and private + discourse; and a monument of servitude became in his hands a title and + incentive of liberty. The decree of the senate, which granted the most + ample prerogatives to the emperor Vespasian, had been inscribed on a + copper plate still extant in the choir of the church of St. John Lateran. + <a href="#linkLnote-23" name="linkLnoteref-23" id="linkLnoteref-23">23</a> + A numerous assembly of nobles and plebeians was invited to this political + lecture, and a convenient theatre was erected for their reception. The + notary appeared in a magnificent and mysterious habit, explained the + inscription by a version and commentary, <a href="#linkLnote-24" + name="linkLnoteref-24" id="linkLnoteref-24">24</a> and descanted with + eloquence and zeal on the ancient glories of the senate and people, from + whom all legal authority was derived. The supine ignorance of the nobles + was incapable of discerning the serious tendency of such representations: + they might sometimes chastise with words and blows the plebeian reformer; + but he was often suffered in the Colonna palace to amuse the company with + his threats and predictions; and the modern Brutus <a href="#linkLnote-25" + name="linkLnoteref-25" id="linkLnoteref-25">25</a> was concealed under the + mask of folly and the character of a buffoon. While they indulged their + contempt, the restoration of the <i>good estate</i>, his favorite + expression, was entertained among the people as a desirable, a possible, + and at length as an approaching, event; and while all had the disposition + to applaud, some had the courage to assist, their promised deliverer. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-20" id="linkLnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ The first and splendid + period of Rienzi, his tribunitian government, is contained in the xviiith + chapter of the Fragments, (p. 399—479,) which, in the new division, + forms the iid book of the history in xxxviii. smaller chapters or + sections.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-201" id="linkLnote-201"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 201 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-201">return</a>)<br /> [ But see in Dr. + Papencordt's work, and in Rienzi's own words, his claim to be a bastard + son of the emperor Henry the Seventh, whose intrigue with his mother + Rienzi relates with a sort of proud shamelessness. Compare account by the + editor of Dr. Papencordt's work in Quarterly Review vol. lxix.—M. + 1845.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-21" id="linkLnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ The reader may be + pleased with a specimen of the original idiom: Fò da soa juventutine + nutricato di latte de eloquentia, bono gramatico, megliore rettuorico, + autorista bravo. Deh como et quanto era veloce leitore! moito usava Tito + Livio, Seneca, et Tullio, et Balerio Massimo, moito li dilettava le + magnificentie di Julio Cesare raccontare. Tutta la die se speculava negl' + intagli di marmo lequali iaccio intorno Roma. Non era altri che esso, che + sapesse lejere li antichi pataffii. Tutte scritture antiche vulgarizzava; + quesse fiure di marmo justamente interpretava. On come spesso diceva, + "Dove suono quelli buoni Romani? dove ene loro somma justitia? poleramme + trovare in tempo che quessi fiuriano!"] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-211" id="linkLnote-211"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 211 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-211">return</a>)<br /> [ Sir J. Hobhouse + published (in his Illustrations of Childe Harold) Rienzi's joyful letter + to the people of Rome on the apparently favorable termination of this + mission.—M. 1845.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-22" id="linkLnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ Petrarch compares the + jealousy of the Romans with the easy temper of the husbands of Avignon, + (Mémoires, tom. i. p. 330.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-221" id="linkLnote-221"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 221 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-221">return</a>)<br /> [ All this Rienzi, + writing at a later period to the archbishop of Prague, attributed to the + criminal abandonment of his flock by the supreme pontiff. See Urkunde apud + Papencordt, p. xliv. Quarterly Review, p. 255.—M. 1845.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-23" id="linkLnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ The fragments of the <i>Lex + regia</i> may be found in the Inscriptions of Gruter, tom. i. p. 242, and + at the end of the Tacitus of Ernesti, with some learned Notes of the + editor, tom. ii.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-24" id="linkLnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ I cannot overlook a + stupendous and laughable blunder of Rienzi. The Lex regia empowers + Vespasian to enlarge the Pomrium, a word familiar to every antiquary. It + was not so to the tribune; he confounds it with pom<i>a</i>rium, an + orchard, translates lo Jardino de Roma cioene Italia, and is copied by the + less excusable ignorance of the Latin translator (p. 406) and the French + historian, (p. 33.) Even the learning of Muratori has slumbered over the + passage.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-25" id="linkLnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [ Priori (<i>Bruto</i>) + tamen similior, juvenis uterque, longe ingenio quam cujus simulationem + induerat, ut sub hoc obtentû liberator ille P R. aperiretur tempore + suo.... Ille regibus, hic tyrannis contemptus, (Opp. p. 536.) * Note: + Fatcor attamen quod-nunc fatuum. nunc hystrionem, nunc gravem nunc + simplicem, nunc astutum, nunc fervidum, nunc timidum simulatorem, et + dissimulatorem ad hunc caritativum finem, quem dixi, constitusepius memet + ipsum. Writing to an archbishop, (of Prague,) Rienzi alleges scriptural + examples. Saltator coram archa David et insanus apparuit coram Rege; + blanda, astuta, et tecta Judith astitit Holoferni; et astute Jacob meruit + benedici, Urkunde xlix.—M. 1845.] + </p> + <p> + A prophecy, or rather a summons, affixed on the church door of St. George, + was the first public evidence of his designs; a nocturnal assembly of a + hundred citizens on Mount Aventine, the first step to their execution. + After an oath of secrecy and aid, he represented to the conspirators the + importance and facility of their enterprise; that the nobles, without + union or resources, were strong only in the fear of their + imaginary strength; that all power, as well as right, was in the hands of + the people; that the revenues of the apostolical chamber might relieve the + public distress; and that the pope himself would approve their victory + over the common enemies of government and freedom. After securing a + faithful band to protect his first declaration, he proclaimed through the + city, by sound of trumpet, that on the evening of the following day, all + persons should assemble without arms before the church of St. Angelo, to + provide for the reestablishment of the good estate. The whole night was + employed in the celebration of thirty masses of the Holy Ghost; and in the + morning, Rienzi, bareheaded, but in complete armor, issued from the + church, encompassed by the hundred conspirators. The pope's vicar, the + simple bishop of Orvieto, who had been persuaded to sustain a part in this + singular ceremony, marched on his right hand; and three great standards + were borne aloft as the emblems of their design. In the first, the banner + of <i>liberty</i>, Rome was seated on two lions, with a palm in one hand + and a globe in the other; St. Paul, with a drawn sword, was delineated in + the banner of <i>justice</i>; and in the third, St. Peter held the keys of + <i>concord</i> and <i>peace</i>. Rienzi was encouraged by the presence and + applause of an innumerable crowd, who understood little, and hoped much; + and the procession slowly rolled forwards from the castle of St. Angelo to + the Capitol. His triumph was disturbed by some secret emotions which he + labored to suppress: he ascended without opposition, and with seeming + confidence, the citadel of the republic; harangued the people from the + balcony; and received the most flattering confirmation of his acts and + laws. The nobles, as if destitute of arms and counsels, beheld in silent + consternation this strange revolution; and the moment had been prudently + chosen, when the most formidable, Stephen Colonna, was absent from the + city. On the first rumor, he returned to his palace, affected to despise + this plebeian tumult, and declared to the messenger of Rienzi, that at his + leisure he would cast the madman from the windows of the Capitol. The + great bell instantly rang an alarm, and so rapid was the tide, so urgent + was the danger, that Colonna escaped with precipitation to the suburb of + St. Laurence: from thence, after a moment's refreshment, he continued the + same speedy career till he reached in safety his castle of Palestrina; + lamenting his own imprudence, which had not trampled the spark of this + mighty conflagration. A general and peremptory order was issued from the + Capitol to all the nobles, that they should peaceably retire to their + estates: they obeyed; and their departure secured the tranquillity of the + free and obedient citizens of Rome. + </p> + <p> + But such voluntary obedience evaporates with the first transports of zeal; + and Rienzi felt the importance of justifying his usurpation by a regular + form and a legal title. At his own choice, the Roman people would have + displayed their attachment and authority, by lavishing on his head the + names of senator or consul, of king or emperor: he preferred the ancient + and modest appellation of tribune; <a href="#linkLnote-251" + name="linkLnoteref-251" id="linkLnoteref-251">251</a> the protection of + the commons was the essence of that sacred office; and they were ignorant, + that it had never been invested with any share in the legislative or + executive powers of the republic. In this character, and with the consent + of the Roman, the tribune enacted the most salutary laws for the + restoration and maintenance of the good estate. By the first he fulfils + the wish of honesty and inexperience, that no civil suit should be + protracted beyond the term of fifteen days. The danger of frequent perjury + might justify the pronouncing against a false accuser the same penalty + which his evidence would have inflicted: the disorders of the times might + compel the legislator to punish every homicide with death, and every + injury with equal retaliation. But the execution of justice was hopeless + till he had previously abolished the tyranny of the nobles. It was + formally provided, that none, except the supreme magistrate, should + possess or command the gates, bridges, or towers of the state; that no + private garrisons should be introduced into the towns or castles of the + Roman territory; that none should bear arms, or presume to fortify their + houses in the city or country; that the barons should be responsible for + the safety of the highways, and the free passage of provisions; and that + the protection of malefactors and robbers should be expiated by a fine of + a thousand marks of silver. But these regulations would have been impotent + and nugatory, had not the licentious nobles been awed by the sword of the + civil power. A sudden alarm from the bell of the Capitol could still + summon to the standard above twenty thousand volunteers: the support of + the tribune and the laws required a more regular and permanent force. In + each harbor of the coast a vessel was stationed for the assurance of + commerce; a standing militia of three hundred and sixty horse and thirteen + hundred foot was levied, clothed, and paid in the thirteen quarters of the + city: and the spirit of a commonwealth may be traced in the grateful + allowance of one hundred florins, or pounds, to the heirs of every soldier + who lost his life in the service of his country. For the maintenance of + the public defence, for the establishment of granaries, for the relief of + widows, orphans, and indigent convents, Rienzi applied, without fear of + sacrilege, the revenues of the apostolic chamber: the three branches of + hearth-money, the salt-duty, and the customs, were each of the annual + produce of one hundred thousand florins; <a href="#linkLnote-26" + name="linkLnoteref-26" id="linkLnoteref-26">26</a> and scandalous were the + abuses, if in four or five months the amount of the salt-duty could be + trebled by his judicious economy. After thus restoring the forces and + finances of the republic, the tribune recalled the nobles from their + solitary independence; required their personal appearance in the Capitol; + and imposed an oath of allegiance to the new government, and of submission + to the laws of the good estate. Apprehensive for their safety, but still + more apprehensive of the danger of a refusal, the princes and barons + returned to their houses at Rome in the garb of simple and peaceful + citizens: the Colonna and Ursini, the Savelli and Frangipani, were + confounded before the tribunal of a plebeian, of the vile buffoon whom + they had so often derided, and their disgrace was aggravated by the + indignation which they vainly struggled to disguise. The same oath was + successively pronounced by the several orders of society, the clergy and + gentlemen, the judges and notaries, the merchants and artisans, and the + gradual descent was marked by the increase of sincerity and zeal. They + swore to live and die with the republic and the church, whose interest was + artfully united by the nominal association of the bishop of Orvieto, the + pope's vicar, to the office of tribune. It was the boast of Rienzi, that + he had delivered the throne and patrimony of St. Peter from a rebellious + aristocracy; and Clement the Sixth, who rejoiced in its fall, affected to + believe the professions, to applaud the merits, and to confirm the title, + of his trusty servant. The speech, perhaps the mind, of the tribune, was + inspired with a lively regard for the purity of the faith: he insinuated + his claim to a supernatural mission from the Holy Ghost; enforced by a + heavy forfeiture the annual duty of confession and communion; and strictly + guarded the spiritual as well as temporal welfare of his faithful people. + <a href="#linkLnote-27" name="linkLnoteref-27" id="linkLnoteref-27">27</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-251" id="linkLnote-251"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 251 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-251">return</a>)<br /> [ Et ego, Deo semper + auctore, ipsa die pristinâ (leg. primâ) Tribunatus, quæ quidem dignitas a + tempore deflorati Imperii, et per annos Vo et ultra sub tyrannicà + occupatione vacavit, ipsos omnes potentes indifferenter Deum at justitiam + odientes, a meâ, ymo a Dei facie fugiendo vehementi Spiritu dissipavi, et + nullo effuso cruore trementes expuli, sine ictu remanente Romane terre + facie renovatâ. Libellus Tribuni ad Cæsarem, p. xxxiv.—M. 1845.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-26" id="linkLnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ In one MS. I read (l. + ii. c. 4, p. 409) perfumante quatro <i>solli</i>, in another, quatro <i>florini</i>, + an important variety, since the florin was worth ten Roman <i>solidi</i>, + (Muratori, dissert. xxviii.) The former reading would give us a population + of 25,000, the latter of 250,000 families; and I much fear, that the + former is more consistent with the decay of Rome and her territory.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-27" id="linkLnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ Hocsemius, p. 498, apud + du Cerçeau, Hist. de Rienzi, p. 194. The fifteen tribunitian laws may be + found in the Roman historian (whom for brevity I shall name) Fortifiocca, + l. ii. c. 4.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkL2HCH0002" id="linkL2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXX: Final Settlement Of The Ecclesiastical State.—Part II. + </h2> + <p> + Never perhaps has the energy and effect of a single mind been more + remarkably felt than in the sudden, though transient, reformation of Rome + by the tribune Rienzi. A den of robbers was converted to the discipline of + a camp or convent: patient to hear, swift to redress, inexorable to + punish, his tribunal was always accessible to the poor and stranger; nor + could birth, or dignity, or the immunities of the church, protect the + offender or his accomplices. The privileged houses, the private + sanctuaries in Rome, on which no officer of justice would presume to + trespass, were abolished; and he applied the timber and iron of their + barricades in the fortifications of the Capitol. The venerable father of + the Colonna was exposed in his own palace to the double shame of being + desirous, and of being unable, to protect a criminal. A mule, with a jar + of oil, had been stolen near Capranica; and the lord of the Ursini family + was condemned to restore the damage, and to discharge a fine of four + hundred florins for his negligence in guarding the highways. Nor were the + persons of the barons more inviolate than their lands or houses; and, + either from accident or design, the same impartial rigor was exercised + against the heads of the adverse factions. Peter Agapet Colonna, who had + himself been senator of Rome, was arrested in the street for injury or + debt; and justice was appeased by the tardy execution of Martin Ursini, + who, among his various acts of violence and rapine, had pillaged a + shipwrecked vessel at the mouth of the Tyber. <a href="#linkLnote-28" + name="linkLnoteref-28" id="linkLnoteref-28">28</a> His name, the purple of + two cardinals, his uncles, a recent marriage, and a mortal disease were + disregarded by the inflexible tribune, who had chosen his victim. The + public officers dragged him from his palace and nuptial bed: his trial was + short and satisfactory: the bell of the Capitol convened the people: + stripped of his mantle, on his knees, with his hands bound behind his + back, he heard the sentence of death; and after a brief confession, Ursini + was led away to the gallows. After such an example, none who were + conscious of guilt could hope for impunity, and the flight of the wicked, + the licentious, and the idle, soon purified the city and territory of + Rome. In this time (says the historian,) the woods began to rejoice that + they were no longer infested with robbers; the oxen began to plough; the + pilgrims visited the sanctuaries; the roads and inns were replenished with + travellers; trade, plenty, and good faith, were restored in the markets; + and a purse of gold might be exposed without danger in the midst of the + highway. As soon as the life and property of the subject are secure, the + labors and rewards of industry spontaneously revive: Rome was still the + metropolis of the Christian world; and the fame and fortunes of the + tribune were diffused in every country by the strangers who had enjoyed + the blessings of his government. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-28" id="linkLnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ Fortifiocca, l. ii. c. + 11. From the account of this shipwreck, we learn some circumstances of the + trade and navigation of the age. 1. The ship was built and freighted at + Naples for the ports of Marseilles and Avignon. 2. The sailors were of + Naples and the Isle of Oenaria, less skilful than those of Sicily and Genoa. + 3. The navigation from Marseilles was a coasting voyage to the mouth of + the Tyber, where they took shelter in a storm; but, instead of finding the + current, unfortunately ran on a shoal: the vessel was stranded, the + mariners escaped. 4. The cargo, which was pillaged, consisted of the + revenue of Provence for the royal treasury, many bags of pepper and + cinnamon, and bales of French cloth, to the value of 20,000 florins; a + rich prize.] + </p> + <p> + The deliverance of his country inspired Rienzi with a vast, and perhaps + visionary, idea of uniting Italy in a great federative republic, of which + Rome should be the ancient and lawful head, and the free cities and + princes the members and associates. His pen was not less eloquent than his + tongue; and his numerous epistles were delivered to swift and trusty + messengers. On foot, with a white wand in their hand, they traversed the + forests and mountains; enjoyed, in the most hostile states, the sacred + security of ambassadors; and reported, in the style of flattery or truth, + that the highways along their passage were lined with kneeling multitudes, + who implored Heaven for the success of their undertaking. Could passion + have listened to reason; could private interest have yielded to the public + welfare; the supreme tribunal and confederate union of the Italian + republic might have healed their intestine discord, and closed the Alps + against the Barbarians of the North. But the propitious season had + elapsed; and if Venice, Florence, Sienna, Perugia, and many inferior + cities offered their lives and fortunes to the good estate, the tyrants of + Lombardy and Tuscany must despise, or hate, the plebeian author of a free + constitution. From them, however, and from every part of Italy, the + tribune received the most friendly and respectful answers: they were + followed by the ambassadors of the princes and republics; and in this + foreign conflux, on all the occasions of pleasure or business, the low + born notary could assume the familiar or majestic courtesy of a sovereign. + <a href="#linkLnote-29" name="linkLnoteref-29" id="linkLnoteref-29">29</a> + The most glorious circumstance of his reign was an appeal to his justice + from Lewis, king of Hungary, who complained, that his brother and her + husband had been perfidiously strangled by Jane, queen of Naples: <a + href="#linkLnote-30" name="linkLnoteref-30" id="linkLnoteref-30">30</a> + her guilt or innocence was pleaded in a solemn trial at Rome; but after + hearing the advocates, <a href="#linkLnote-31" name="linkLnoteref-31" + id="linkLnoteref-31">31</a> the tribune adjourned this weighty and + invidious cause, which was soon determined by the sword of the Hungarian. + Beyond the Alps, more especially at Avignon, the revolution was the theme + of curiosity, wonder, and applause. <a href="#linkLnote-311" + name="linkLnoteref-311" id="linkLnoteref-311">311</a> Petrarch had been + the private friend, perhaps the secret counsellor, of Rienzi: his writings + breathe the most ardent spirit of patriotism and joy; and all respect for + the pope, all gratitude for the Colonna, was lost in the superior duties + of a Roman citizen. The poet-laureate of the Capitol maintains the act, + applauds the hero, and mingles with some apprehension and advice, the most + lofty hopes of the permanent and rising greatness of the republic. <a + href="#linkLnote-32" name="linkLnoteref-32" id="linkLnoteref-32">32</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-29" id="linkLnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ It was thus that Oliver + Cromwell's old acquaintance, who remembered his vulgar and ungracious + entrance into the House of Commons, were astonished at the ease and + majesty of the protector on his throne, (See Harris's Life of Cromwell, p. + 27—34, from Clarendon Warwick, Whitelocke, Waller, &c.) The + consciousness of merit and power will sometimes elevate the manners to the + station.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-30" id="linkLnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ See the causes, + circumstances, and effects of the death of Andrew in Giannone, (tom. iii. + l. xxiii. p. 220—229,) and the Life of Petrarch (Mémoires, tom. ii. + p. 143—148, 245—250, 375—379, Notes, p. 21—37.) + The abbé de Sade <i>wishes</i> to extenuate her guilt.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-31" id="linkLnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ The advocate who pleaded + against Jane could add nothing to the logical force and brevity of his + master's epistle. Johanna! inordinata vita præcedens, retentio potestatis + in regno, neglecta vindicta, vir alter susceptus, et excusatio subsequens, + necis viri tui te probant fuisse participem et consortem. Jane of Naples, + and Mary of Scotland, have a singular conformity.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-311" id="linkLnote-311"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 311 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-311">return</a>)<br /> [ In his letter to the + archbishop of Prague, Rienzi thus describes the effect of his elevation on + Italy and on the world: "Did I not restore real peace among the cities + which were distracted by factions? did I not cause all the citizens, + exiled by party violence, with their wretched wives and children, to be + readmitted? had I not begun to extinguish the factious names (scismatica + nomina) of Guelf and Ghibelline, for which countless thousands had + perished body and soul, under the eyes of their pastors, by the reduction + of the city of Rome and all Italy into one amicable, peaceful, holy, and + united confederacy? the consecrated standards and banners having been by + me collected and blended together, and, in witness to our holy association + and perfect union, offered up in the presence of the ambassadors of all + the cities of Italy, on the day of the assumption of our Blessed Lady." p. + xlvii. ——In the Libellus ad Cæsarem: "I received the homage + and submission of all the sovereigns of Apulia, the barons and counts, and + almost all the people of Italy. I was honored by solemn embassies and + letters by the emperor of Constantinople and the king of England. The + queen of Naples submitted herself and her kingdom to the protection of the + tribune. The king of Hungary, by two solemn embassies, brought his cause + against his queen and his nobles before my tribunal; and I venture to say + further, that the fame of the tribune alarmed the soldan of Babylon. When + the Christian pilgrims to the sepulchre of our Lord related to the + Christian and Jewish inhabitants of Jerusalem all the yet unheard-of and + wonderful circumstances of the reformation in Rome, both Jews and + Christians celebrated the event with unusual festivities. When the soldan + inquired the cause of these rejoicings, and received this intelligence + about Rome, he ordered all the havens and cities on the coast to be + fortified, and put in a state of defence," p. xxxv.—M. 1845.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-32" id="linkLnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Epistola + Hortatoria de Capessenda Republica, from Petrarch to Nicholas Rienzi, + (Opp. p. 535—540,) and the vth eclogue or pastoral, a perpetual and + obscure allegory.] + </p> + <p> + While Petrarch indulged these prophetic visions, the Roman hero was fast + declining from the meridian of fame and power; and the people, who had + gazed with astonishment on the ascending meteor, began to mark the + irregularity of its course, and the vicissitudes of light and obscurity. + More eloquent than judicious, more enterprising than resolute, the + faculties of Rienzi were not balanced by cool and commanding reason: he + magnified in a tenfold proportion the objects of hope and fear; and + prudence, which could not have erected, did not presume to fortify, his + throne. In the blaze of prosperity, his virtues were insensibly tinctured + with the adjacent vices; justice with cruelty, liberality with + profusion, and the desire of fame with puerile and ostentatious vanity. <a + href="#linkLnote-321" name="linkLnoteref-321" id="linkLnoteref-321">321</a> + He might have learned, that the ancient tribunes, so strong and sacred in + the public opinion, were not distinguished in style, habit, or appearance, + from an ordinary plebeian; <a href="#linkLnote-33" name="linkLnoteref-33" + id="linkLnoteref-33">33</a> and that as often as they visited the city on + foot, a single viator, or beadle, attended the exercise of their office. + The Gracchi would have frowned or smiled, could they have read the + sonorous titles and epithets of their successor, "Nicholas, severe and + merciful; deliverer of Rome; defender of Italy; <a href="#linkLnote-34" + name="linkLnoteref-34" id="linkLnoteref-34">34</a> friend of mankind, and + of liberty, peace, and justice; tribune august:" his theatrical pageants + had prepared the revolution; but Rienzi abused, in luxury and pride, the + political maxim of speaking to the eyes, as well as the understanding, of + the multitude. From nature he had received the gift of a handsome person, + <a href="#linkLnote-35" name="linkLnoteref-35" id="linkLnoteref-35">35</a> + till it was swelled and disfigured by intemperance: and his propensity to + laughter was corrected in the magistrate by the affectation of gravity and + sternness. He was clothed, at least on public occasions, in a + party-colored robe of velvet or satin, lined with fur, and embroidered + with gold: the rod of justice, which he carried in his hand, was a sceptre + of polished steel, crowned with a globe and cross of gold, and enclosing a + small fragment of the true and holy wood. In his civil and religious + processions through the city, he rode on a white steed, the symbol of + royalty: the great banner of the republic, a sun with a circle of stars, a + dove with an olive branch, was displayed over his head; a shower of gold + and silver was scattered among the populace, fifty guards with halberds + encompassed his person; a troop of horse preceded his march; and their + tymbals and trumpets were of massy silver. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-321" id="linkLnote-321"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 321 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-321">return</a>)<br /> [ An illustrious female + writer has drawn, with a single stroke, the character of Rienzi, + Crescentius, and Arnold of Brescia, the fond restorers of Roman liberty: + 'Qui ont pris les souvenirs pour les espérances.' Corinne, tom. i. p. 159. + "Could Tacitus have excelled this?" Hallam, vol i p. 418.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-33" id="linkLnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ In his Roman Questions, + Plutarch (Opuscul. tom. i. p. 505, 506, edit. Græc. Hen. Steph.) states, + on the most constitutional principles, the simple greatness of the + tribunes, who were not properly magistrates, but a check on magistracy. It + was their duty and interest omoiousqai schmati, kai stolh kai diaithtoiV + epitugcanousi tvn politvn.... katapateisqai dei (a saying of C. Curio) kai + mh semnon einai th oyei mhde dusprosodon... osw de mallon ektapeinoutai tv + swmati, tosoutw mallon auxetai th dunamei, &c. Rienzi, and Petrarch + himself, were incapable perhaps of reading a Greek philosopher; but they + might have imbibed the same modest doctrines from their favorite Latins, + Livy and Valerius Maximus.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-34" id="linkLnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ I could not express in + English the forcible, though barbarous, title of <i>Zelator</i> Italiæ, + which Rienzi assumed.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-35" id="linkLnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ Era bell' homo, (l. ii. + c. l. p. 399.) It is remarkable, that the riso sarcastico of the Bracciano + edition is wanting in the Roman MS., from which Muratori has given the + text. In his second reign, when he is painted almost as a monster, Rienzi + travea una ventresca tonna trionfale, a modo de uno Abbate Asiano, or + Asinino, (l. iii. c. 18, p. 523.)] + </p> + <p> + The ambition of the honors of chivalry <a href="#linkLnote-36" + name="linkLnoteref-36" id="linkLnoteref-36">36</a> betrayed the meanness + of his birth, and degraded the importance of his office; and the + equestrian tribune was not less odious to the nobles, whom he adopted, + than to the plebeians, whom he deserted. All that yet remained of + treasure, or luxury, or art, was exhausted on that solemn day. Rienzi led + the procession from the Capitol to the Lateran; the tediousness of the way + was relieved with decorations and games; the ecclesiastical, civil, and + military orders marched under their various banners; the Roman ladies + attended his wife; and the ambassadors of Italy might loudly applaud or + secretly deride the novelty of the pomp. In the evening, which they had + reached the church and palace of Constantine, he thanked and dismissed the + numerous assembly, with an invitation to the festival of the ensuing day. + From the hands of a venerable knight he received the order of the Holy + Ghost; the purification of the bath was a previous ceremony; but in no + step of his life did Rienzi excite such scandal and censure as by the + profane use of the porphyry vase, in which Constantine (a foolish legend) + had been healed of his leprosy by Pope Sylvester. <a href="#linkLnote-37" + name="linkLnoteref-37" id="linkLnoteref-37">37</a> With equal presumption + the tribune watched or reposed within the consecrated precincts of the + baptistery; and the failure of his state-bed was interpreted as an omen of + his approaching downfall. At the hour of worship, he showed himself to the + returning crowds in a majestic attitude, with a robe of purple, his sword, + and gilt spurs; but the holy rites were soon interrupted by his levity and + insolence. Rising from his throne, and advancing towards the congregation, + he proclaimed in a loud voice: "We summon to our tribunal Pope Clement: + and command him to reside in his diocese of Rome: we also summon the + sacred college of cardinals. <a href="#linkLnote-38" name="linkLnoteref-38" + id="linkLnoteref-38">38</a> We again summon the two pretenders, Charles of + Bohemia and Lewis of Bavaria, who style themselves emperors: we likewise + summon all the electors of Germany, to inform us on what pretence they + have usurped the inalienable right of the Roman people, the ancient and + lawful sovereigns of the empire." <a href="#linkLnote-39" + name="linkLnoteref-39" id="linkLnoteref-39">39</a> Unsheathing his maiden + sword, he thrice brandished it to the three parts of the world, and thrice + repeated the extravagant declaration, "And this too is mine!" The pope's + vicar, the bishop of Orvieto, attempted to check this career of folly; but + his feeble protest was silenced by martial music; and instead of + withdrawing from the assembly, he consented to dine with his brother + tribune, at a table which had hitherto been reserved for the supreme + pontiff. A banquet, such as the Cæsars had given, was prepared for the + Romans. The apartments, porticos, and courts of the Lateran were spread + with innumerable tables for either sex, and every condition; a stream of + wine flowed from the nostrils of Constantine's brazen horse; no complaint, + except of the scarcity of water, could be heard; and the licentiousness of + the multitude was curbed by discipline and fear. A subsequent day was + appointed for the coronation of Rienzi; <a href="#linkLnote-40" + name="linkLnoteref-40" id="linkLnoteref-40">40</a> seven crowns of + different leaves or metals were successively placed on his head by the + most eminent of the Roman clergy; they represented the seven gifts of the + Holy Ghost; and he still professed to imitate the example of the ancient + tribunes. <a href="#linkLnote-401" name="linkLnoteref-401" + id="linkLnoteref-401">401</a> These extraordinary spectacles might deceive + or flatter the people; and their own vanity was gratified in the vanity of + their leader. But in his private life he soon deviated from the strict + rule of frugality and abstinence; and the plebeians, who were awed by the + splendor of the nobles, were provoked by the luxury of their equal. His + wife, his son, his uncle, (a barber in name and profession,) exposed the + contrast of vulgar manners and princely expense; and without acquiring the + majesty, Rienzi degenerated into the vices, of a king. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-36" id="linkLnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ Strange as it may seem, + this festival was not without a precedent. In the year 1327, two barons, a + Colonna and an Ursini, the usual balance, were created knights by the + Roman people: their bath was of rose-water, their beds were decked with + royal magnificence, and they were served at St. Maria of Araceli in the + Capitol, by the twenty-eight <i>buoni huomini</i>. They afterwards + received from Robert, king of Naples, the sword of chivalry, (Hist. Rom. + l. i. c. 2, p. 259.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-37" id="linkLnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ All parties believed in + the leprosy and bath of Constantine (Petrarch. Epist. Famil. vi. 2,) and + Rienzi justified his own conduct by observing to the court of Avignon, + that a vase which had been used by a Pagan could not be profaned by a + pious Christian. Yet this crime is specified in the bull of + excommunication, (Hocsemius, apud du Cerçeau, p. 189, 190.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-38" id="linkLnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ This <i>verbal</i> + summons of Pope Clement VI., which rests on the authority of the Roman + historian and a Vatican MS., is disputed by the biographer of Petrarch, + (tom. ii. not. p. 70—76), with arguments rather of decency than of + weight. The court of Avignon might not choose to agitate this delicate + question.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-39" id="linkLnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ The summons of the two + rival emperors, a monument of freedom and folly, is extant in Hocsemius, + (Cerçeau, p. 163—166.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-40" id="linkLnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ It is singular, that the + Roman historian should have overlooked this sevenfold coronation, which is + sufficiently proved by internal evidence, and the testimony of Hocsemius, + and even of Rienzi, (Cercean p. 167—170, 229.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-401" id="linkLnote-401"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 401 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-401">return</a>)<br /> [ It was on this + occasion that he made the profane comparison between himself and our Lord; + and the striking circumstance took place which he relates in his letter to + the archbishop of Prague. In the midst of all the wild and joyous + exultation of the people, one of his most zealous supporters, a monk, who + was in high repute for his sanctity, stood apart in a corner of the church + and wept bitterly! A domestic chaplain of Rienzi's inquired the cause of + his grief. "Now," replied the man of God, "is thy master cast down from + heaven—never saw I man so proud. By the aid of the Holy Ghost he has + driven the tyrants from the city without drawing a sword; the cities and + the sovereigns of Italy have submitted to his power. Why is he so arrogant + and ungrateful towards the Most High? Why does he seek earthly and + transitory rewards for his labors, and in his wanton speech liken himself + to the Creator? Tell thy master that he can only atone for this offence by + tears of penitence." In the evening the chaplain communicated this solemn + rebuke to the tribune: it appalled him for the time, but was soon + forgotten in the tumult and hurry of business.—M. 1845.] + </p> + <p> + A simple citizen describes with pity, or perhaps with pleasure, the + humiliation of the barons of Rome. "Bareheaded, their hands crossed on + their breast, they stood with downcast looks in the presence of the + tribune; and they trembled, good God, how they trembled!" <a + href="#linkLnote-41" name="linkLnoteref-41" id="linkLnoteref-41">41</a> As + long as the yoke of Rienzi was that of justice and their country, their + conscience forced them to esteem the man, whom pride and interest provoked + them to hate: his extravagant conduct soon fortified their hatred by + contempt; and they conceived the hope of subverting a power which was no + longer so deeply rooted in the public confidence. The old animosity of the + Colonna and Ursini was suspended for a moment by their common disgrace: + they associated their wishes, and perhaps their designs; an assassin was + seized and tortured; he accused the nobles; and as soon as Rienzi deserved + the fate, he adopted the suspicions and maxims, of a tyrant. On the same + day, under various pretences, he invited to the Capitol his principal + enemies, among whom were five members of the Ursini and three of the + Colonna name. But instead of a council or a banquet, they found themselves + prisoners under the sword of despotism or justice; and the consciousness + of innocence or guilt might inspire them with equal apprehensions of + danger. At the sound of the great bell the people assembled; they were + arraigned for a conspiracy against the tribune's life; and though some + might sympathize in their distress, not a hand, nor a voice, was raised to + rescue the first of the nobility from their impending doom. Their apparent + boldness was prompted by despair; they passed in separate chambers a + sleepless and painful night; and the venerable hero, Stephen Colonna, + striking against the door of his prison, repeatedly urged his guards to + deliver him by a speedy death from such ignominious servitude. In the + morning they understood their sentence from the visit of a confessor and + the tolling of the bell. The great hall of the Capitol had been decorated + for the bloody scene with red and white hangings: the countenance of the + tribune was dark and severe; the swords of the executioners were + unsheathed; and the barons were interrupted in their dying speeches by the + sound of trumpets. But in this decisive moment, Rienzi was not less + anxious or apprehensive than his captives: he dreaded the splendor of + their names, their surviving kinsmen, the inconstancy of the people, the + reproaches of the world, and, after rashly offering a mortal injury, he + vainly presumed that, if he could forgive, he might himself be forgiven. + His elaborate oration was that of a Christian and a suppliant; and, as the + humble minister of the commons, he entreated his masters to pardon these + noble criminals, for whose repentance and future service he pledged his + faith and authority. "If you are spared," said the tribune, "by the mercy + of the Romans, will you not promise to support the good estate with your + lives and fortunes?" Astonished by this marvellous clemency, the barons + bowed their heads; and while they devoutly repeated the oath of + allegiance, might whisper a secret, and more sincere, assurance of + revenge. A priest, in the name of the people, pronounced their absolution: + they received the communion with the tribune, assisted at the banquet, + followed the procession; and, after every spiritual and temporal sign of + reconciliation, were dismissed in safety to their respective homes, with + the new honors and titles of generals, consuls, and patricians. <a + href="#linkLnote-42" name="linkLnoteref-42" id="linkLnoteref-42">42</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-41" id="linkLnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ Puoi se faceva stare + denante a se, mentre sedeva, li baroni tutti in piedi ritti co le vraccia + piecate, e co li capucci tratti. Deh como stavano paurosi! (Hist. Rom. l. + ii. c. 20, p. 439.) He saw them, and we see them.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-42" id="linkLnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ The original letter, in + which Rienzi justifies his treatment of the Colonna, (Hocsemius, apud du + Cerçeau, p. 222—229,) displays, in genuine colors, the mixture of + the knave and the madman.] + </p> + <p> + During some weeks they were checked by the memory of their danger, rather + than of their deliverance, till the most powerful of the Ursini, escaping + with the Colonna from the city, erected at Marino the standard of + rebellion. The fortifications of the castle were instantly restored; the + vassals attended their lord; the outlaws armed against the magistrate; the + flocks and herds, the harvests and vineyards, from Marino to the gates of + Rome, were swept away or destroyed; and the people arraigned Rienzi as the + author of the calamities which his government had taught them to forget. + In the camp, Rienzi appeared to less advantage than in the rostrum; and he + neglected the progress of the rebel barons till their numbers were strong, + and their castles impregnable. From the pages of Livy he had not imbibed + the art, or even the courage, of a general: an army of twenty thousand + Romans returned without honor or effect from the attack of Marino; and his + vengeance was amused by painting his enemies, their heads downwards, and + drowning two dogs (at least they should have been bears) as the + representatives of the Ursini. The belief of his incapacity encouraged + their operations: they were invited by their secret adherents; and the + barons attempted, with four thousand foot, and sixteen hundred horse, to + enter Rome by force or surprise. The city was prepared for their + reception; the alarm-bell rung all night; the gates were strictly guarded, + or insolently open; and after some hesitation they sounded a retreat. The + two first divisions had passed along the walls, but the prospect of a free + entrance tempted the headstrong valor of the nobles in the rear; and after + a successful skirmish, they were overthrown and massacred without quarter + by the crowds of the Roman people. Stephen Colonna the younger, the noble + spirit to whom Petrarch ascribed the restoration of Italy, was preceded or + accompanied in death by his son John, a gallant youth, by his brother + Peter, who might regret the ease and honors of the church, by a nephew of + legitimate birth, and by two bastards of the Colonna race; and the number + of seven, the seven crowns, as Rienzi styled them, of the Holy Ghost, was + completed by the agony of the deplorable parent, and the veteran chief, + who had survived the hope and fortune of his house. The vision and + prophecies of St. Martin and Pope Boniface had been used by the tribune to + animate his troops: <a href="#linkLnote-43" name="linkLnoteref-43" + id="linkLnoteref-43">43</a> he displayed, at least in the pursuit, the + spirit of a hero; but he forgot the maxims of the ancient Romans, who + abhorred the triumphs of civil war. The conqueror ascended the Capitol; + deposited his crown and sceptre on the altar; and boasted, with some + truth, that he had cut off an ear, which neither pope nor emperor had been + able to amputate. <a href="#linkLnote-44" name="linkLnoteref-44" + id="linkLnoteref-44">44</a> His base and implacable revenge denied the + honors of burial; and the bodies of the Colonna, which he threatened to + expose with those of the vilest malefactors, were secretly interred by the + holy virgins of their name and family. <a href="#linkLnote-45" + name="linkLnoteref-45" id="linkLnoteref-45">45</a> The people sympathized + in their grief, repented of their own fury, and detested the indecent joy + of Rienzi, who visited the spot where these illustrious victims had + fallen. It was on that fatal spot that he conferred on his son the honor + of knighthood: and the ceremony was accomplished by a slight blow from + each of the horsemen of the guard, and by a ridiculous and inhuman + ablution from a pool of water, which was yet polluted with patrician + blood. <a href="#linkLnote-46" name="linkLnoteref-46" id="linkLnoteref-46">46</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-43" id="linkLnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ Rienzi, in the + above-mentioned letter, ascribes to St. Martin the tribune, Boniface VIII. + the enemy of Colonna, himself, and the Roman people, the glory of the day, + which Villani likewise (l. 12, c. 104) describes as a regular battle. The + disorderly skirmish, the flight of the Romans, and the cowardice of + Rienzi, are painted in the simple and minute narrative of Fortifiocca, or + the anonymous citizen, (l. i. c. 34—37.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-44" id="linkLnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ In describing the fall + of the Colonna, I speak only of the family of Stephen the elder, who is + often confounded by the P. du Cerçeau with his son. That family was + extinguished, but the house has been perpetuated in the collateral + branches, of which I have not a very accurate knowledge. Circumspice (says + Petrarch) familiæ tuæ statum, Columniensium <i>domos</i>: solito pauciores + habeat columnas. Quid ad rem modo fundamentum stabile, solidumque + permaneat.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-45" id="linkLnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ The convent of St. + Silvester was founded, endowed, and protected by the Colonna cardinals, + for the daughters of the family who embraced a monastic life, and who, in + the year 1318, were twelve in number. The others were allowed to marry + with their kinsmen in the fourth degree, and the dispensation was + justified by the small number and close alliances of the noble families of + Rome, (Mémoires sur Pétrarque, tom. i. p. 110, tom. ii. p. 401.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-46" id="linkLnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ Petrarch wrote a stiff + and pedantic letter of consolation, (Fam. l. vii. epist. 13, p. 682, 683.) + The friend was lost in the patriot. Nulla toto orbe principum familia + carior; carior tamen respublica, carior Roma, carior Italia. ——Je + rends graces aux Dieux de n'être pas Romain.] + </p> + <p> + A short delay would have saved the Colonna, the delay of a single month, + which elapsed between the triumph and the exile of Rienzi. In the pride of + victory, he forfeited what yet remained of his civil virtues, without + acquiring the fame of military prowess. A free and vigorous opposition was + formed in the city; and when the tribune proposed in the public council <a + href="#linkLnote-47" name="linkLnoteref-47" id="linkLnoteref-47">47</a> to + impose a new tax, and to regulate the government of Perugia, thirty-nine + members voted against his measures; repelled the injurious charge of + treachery and corruption; and urged him to prove, by their forcible + exclusion, that if the populace adhered to his cause, it was already + disclaimed by the most respectable citizens. The pope and the sacred + college had never been dazzled by his specious professions; they were + justly offended by the insolence of his conduct; a cardinal legate was + sent to Italy, and after some fruitless treaty, and two personal + interviews, he fulminated a bull of excommunication, in which the tribune + is degraded from his office, and branded with the guilt of rebellion, + sacrilege, and heresy. <a href="#linkLnote-48" name="linkLnoteref-48" + id="linkLnoteref-48">48</a> The surviving barons of Rome were now humbled + to a sense of allegiance; their interest and revenge engaged them in the + service of the church; but as the fate of the Colonna was before their + eyes, they abandoned to a private adventurer the peril and glory of the + revolution. John Pepin, count of Minorbino, <a href="#linkLnote-49" + name="linkLnoteref-49" id="linkLnoteref-49">49</a> in the kingdom of + Naples, had been condemned for his crimes, or his riches, to perpetual + imprisonment; and Petrarch, by soliciting his release, indirectly + contributed to the ruin of his friend. At the head of one hundred and + fifty soldiers, the count of Minorbino introduced himself into Rome; + barricaded the quarter of the Colonna: and found the enterprise as easy as + it had seemed impossible. From the first alarm, the bell of the Capitol + incessantly tolled; but, instead of repairing to the well-known sound, the + people were silent and inactive; and the pusillanimous Rienzi, deploring + their ingratitude with sighs and tears, abdicated the government and + palace of the republic. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-47" id="linkLnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ This council and + opposition is obscurely mentioned by Pollistore, a contemporary writer, + who has preserved some curious and original facts, (Rer. Italicarum, tom. + xxv. c. 31, p. 798—804.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-48" id="linkLnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ The briefs and bulls of + Clement VI. against Rienzi are translated by the P. du Cerçeau, (p. 196, + 232,) from the Ecclesiastical Annals of Odericus Raynaldus, (A.D. 1347, + No. 15, 17, 21, &c.,) who found them in the archives of the Vatican.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-49" id="linkLnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ Matteo Villani describes + the origin, character, and death of this count of Minorbino, a man da + natura inconstante e senza fede, whose grandfather, a crafty notary, was + enriched and ennobled by the spoils of the Saracens of Nocera, (l. vii. c. + 102, 103.) See his imprisonment, and the efforts of Petrarch, (tom. ii. p. + 149—151.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkL2HCH0003" id="linkL2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXX: Final Settlement Of The Ecclesiastical State.—Part III. + </h2> + <p> + Without drawing his sword, count Pepin restored the aristocracy and the + church; three senators were chosen, and the legate, assuming the first + rank, accepted his two colleagues from the rival families of Colonna and + Ursini. The acts of the tribune were abolished, his head was proscribed; + yet such was the terror of his name, that the barons hesitated three days + before they would trust themselves in the city, and Rienzi was left above + a month in the castle of St. Angelo, from whence he peaceably withdrew, + after laboring, without effect, to revive the affection and courage of the + Romans. The vision of freedom and empire had vanished: their fallen spirit + would have acquiesced in servitude, had it been smoothed by tranquillity + and order; and it was scarcely observed, that the new senators derived + their authority from the Apostolic See; that four cardinals were appointed + to reform, with dictatorial power, the state of the republic. Rome was + again agitated by the bloody feuds of the barons, who detested each other, + and despised the commons: their hostile fortresses, both in town and + country, again rose, and were again demolished: and the peaceful citizens, + a flock of sheep, were devoured, says the Florentine historian, by these + rapacious wolves. But when their pride and avarice had exhausted the + patience of the Romans, a confraternity of the Virgin Mary protected or + avenged the republic: the bell of the Capitol was again tolled, the nobles + in arms trembled in the presence of an unarmed multitude; and of the two + senators, Colonna escaped from the window of the palace, and Ursini was + stoned at the foot of the altar. The dangerous office of tribune was + successively occupied by two plebeians, Cerroni and Baroncelli. The + mildness of Cerroni was unequal to the times; and after a faint struggle, + he retired with a fair reputation and a decent fortune to the comforts of + rural life. Devoid of eloquence or genius, Baroncelli was distinguished by + a resolute spirit: he spoke the language of a patriot, and trod in the + footsteps of tyrants; his suspicion was a sentence of death, and his own + death was the reward of his cruelties. Amidst the public misfortunes, the + faults of Rienzi were forgotten; and the Romans sighed for the peace and + prosperity of their good estate. <a href="#linkLnote-50" + name="linkLnoteref-50" id="linkLnoteref-50">50</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-50" id="linkLnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ The troubles of Rome, + from the departure to the return of Rienzi, are related by Matteo Villani + (l. ii. c. 47, l. iii. c. 33, 57, 78) and Thomas Fortifiocca, (l. iii. c. + 1—4.) I have slightly passed over these secondary characters, who + imitated the original tribune.] + </p> + <p> + After an exile of seven years, the first deliverer was again restored to + his country. In the disguise of a monk or a pilgrim, he escaped from the + castle of St. Angelo, implored the friendship of the king of Hungary at + Naples, tempted the ambition of every bold adventurer, mingled at Rome + with the pilgrims of the jubilee, lay concealed among the hermits of the + Apennine, and wandered through the cities of Italy, Germany, and Bohemia. + His person was invisible, his name was yet formidable; and the anxiety of + the court of Avignon supposes, and even magnifies, his personal merit. The + emperor Charles the Fourth gave audience to a stranger, who frankly + revealed himself as the tribune of the republic; and astonished an + assembly of ambassadors and princes, by the eloquence of a patriot and the + visions of a prophet, the downfall of tyranny and the kingdom of the Holy + Ghost. <a href="#linkLnote-51" name="linkLnoteref-51" id="linkLnoteref-51">51</a> + Whatever had been his hopes, Rienzi found himself a captive; but he + supported a character of independence and dignity, and obeyed, as his own + choice, the irresistible summons of the supreme pontiff. The zeal of + Petrarch, which had been cooled by the unworthy conduct, was rekindled by + the sufferings and the presence, of his friend; and he boldly complains of + the times, in which the savior of Rome was delivered by her emperor into + the hands of her bishop. Rienzi was transported slowly, but in safe + custody, from Prague to Avignon: his entrance into the city was that of a + malefactor; in his prison he was chained by the leg; and four cardinals + were named to inquire into the crimes of heresy and rebellion. But his + trial and condemnation would have involved some questions, which it was + more prudent to leave under the veil of mystery: the temporal supremacy of + the popes; the duty of residence; the civil and ecclesiastical privileges + of the clergy and people of Rome. The reigning pontiff well deserved the + appellation of <i>Clement</i>: the strange vicissitudes and magnanimous + spirit of the captive excited his pity and esteem; and Petrarch believes + that he respected in the hero the name and sacred character of a poet. <a + href="#linkLnote-52" name="linkLnoteref-52" id="linkLnoteref-52">52</a> + Rienzi was indulged with an easy confinement and the use of books; and in + the assiduous study of Livy and the Bible, he sought the cause and the + consolation of his misfortunes. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-51" id="linkLnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ These visions, of which + the friends and enemies of Rienzi seem alike ignorant, are surely + magnified by the zeal of Pollistore, a Dominican inquisitor, (Rer. Ital. + tom. xxv. c. 36, p. 819.) Had the tribune taught, that Christ was + succeeded by the Holy Ghost, that the tyranny of the pope would be + abolished, he might have been convicted of heresy and treason, without + offending the Roman people. * Note: So far from having magnified these + visions, Pollistore is more than confirmed by the documents published by + Papencordt. The adoption of all the wild doctrines of the Fratricelli, the + Spirituals, in which, for the time at least, Rienzi appears to have been + in earnest; his magnificent offers to the emperor, and the whole history + of his life, from his first escape from Rome to his imprisonment at + Avignon, are among the most curious chapters of his eventful life.—M. + 1845.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-52" id="linkLnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ The astonishment, the + envy almost, of Petrarch is a proof, if not of the truth of this + incredible fact, at least of his own veracity. The abbé de Sade (Mémoires, + tom. iii. p. 242) quotes the vith epistle of the xiiith book of Petrarch, + but it is of the royal MS., which he consulted, and not of the ordinary + Basil edition, (p. 920.)] + </p> + <p> + The succeeding pontificate of Innocent the Sixth opened a new prospect of + his deliverance and restoration; and the court of Avignon was persuaded, + that the successful rebel could alone appease and reform the anarchy of + the metropolis. After a solemn profession of fidelity, the Roman tribune + was sent into Italy, with the title of senator; but the death of + Baroncelli appeared to supersede the use of his mission; and the legate, + Cardinal Albornoz, <a href="#linkLnote-53" name="linkLnoteref-53" + id="linkLnoteref-53">53</a> a consummate statesman, allowed him with + reluctance, and without aid, to undertake the perilous experiment. His + first reception was equal to his wishes: the day of his entrance was a + public festival; and his eloquence and authority revived the laws of the + good estate. But this momentary sunshine was soon clouded by his own vices + and those of the people: in the Capitol, he might often regret the prison + of Avignon; and after a second administration of four months, Rienzi was + massacred in a tumult which had been fomented by the Roman barons. In the + society of the Germans and Bohemians, he is said to have contracted the + habits of intemperance and cruelty: adversity had chilled his enthusiasm, + without fortifying his reason or virtue; and that youthful hope, that + lively assurance, which is the pledge of success, was now succeeded by the + cold impotence of distrust and despair. The tribune had reigned with + absolute dominion, by the choice, and in the hearts, of the Romans: the + senator was the servile minister of a foreign court; and while he was + suspected by the people, he was abandoned by the prince. The legate + Albornoz, who seemed desirous of his ruin, inflexibly refused all supplies + of men and money; a faithful subject could no longer presume to touch the + revenues of the apostolical chamber; and the first idea of a tax was the + signal of clamor and sedition. Even his justice was tainted with the guilt + or reproach of selfish cruelty: the most virtuous citizen of Rome was + sacrificed to his jealousy; and in the execution of a public robber, from + whose purse he had been assisted, the magistrate too much forgot, or too + much remembered, the obligations of the debtor. <a href="#linkLnote-54" + name="linkLnoteref-54" id="linkLnoteref-54">54</a> A civil war exhausted + his treasures, and the patience of the city: the Colonna maintained their + hostile station at Palestrina; and his mercenaries soon despised a leader + whose ignorance and fear were envious of all subordinate merit. In the + death, as in the life, of Rienzi, the hero and the coward were strangely + mingled. When the Capitol was invested by a furious multitude, when he was + basely deserted by his civil and military servants, the intrepid senator, + waving the banner of liberty, presented himself on the balcony, addressed + his eloquence to the various passions of the Romans, and labored to + persuade them, that in the same cause himself and the republic must either + stand or fall. His oration was interrupted by a volley of imprecations and + stones; and after an arrow had transpierced his hand, he sunk into abject + despair, and fled weeping to the inner chambers, from whence he was let + down by a sheet before the windows of the prison. Destitute of aid or + hope, he was besieged till the evening: the doors of the Capitol were + destroyed with axes and fire; and while the senator attempted to escape in + a plebeian habit, he was discovered and dragged to the platform of the + palace, the fatal scene of his judgments and executions. A whole hour, + without voice or motion, he stood amidst the multitude half naked and half + dead: their rage was hushed into curiosity and wonder: the last feelings + of reverence and compassion yet struggled in his favor; and they might + have prevailed, if a bold assassin had not plunged a dagger in his breast. + He fell senseless with the first stroke: the impotent revenge of his + enemies inflicted a thousand wounds: and the senator's body was abandoned + to the dogs, to the Jews, and to the flames. Posterity will compare the + virtues and failings of this extraordinary man; but in a long period of + anarchy and servitude, the name of Rienzi has often been celebrated as the + deliverer of his country, and the last of the Roman patriots. <a + href="#linkLnote-55" name="linkLnoteref-55" id="linkLnoteref-55">55</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-53" id="linkLnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ Ægidius, or Giles + Albornoz, a noble Spaniard, archbishop of Toledo, and cardinal legate in + Italy, (A.D. 1353—1367,) restored, by his arms and counsels, the + temporal dominion of the popes. His life has been separately written by + Sepulveda; but Dryden could not reasonably suppose, that his name, or that + of Wolsey, had reached the ears of the Mufti in Don Sebastian.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-54" id="linkLnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ From Matteo Villani and + Fortifiocca, the P. du Cerçeau (p. 344—394) has extracted the life + and death of the chevalier Montreal, the life of a robber and the death of + a hero. At the head of a free company, the first that desolated Italy, he + became rich and formidable be had money in all the banks,—60,000 + ducats in Padua alone.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-55" id="linkLnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ The exile, second + government, and death of Rienzi, are minutely related by the anonymous + Roman, who appears neither his friend nor his enemy, (l. iii. c. 12—25.) + Petrarch, who loved the <i>tribune</i>, was indifferent to the fate of the + <i>senator</i>.] + </p> + <p> + The first and most generous wish of Petrarch was the restoration of a free + republic; but after the exile and death of his plebeian hero, he turned + his eyes from the tribune, to the king, of the Romans. The Capitol was yet + stained with the blood of Rienzi, when Charles the Fourth descended from + the Alps to obtain the Italian and Imperial crowns. In his passage through + Milan he received the visit, and repaid the flattery, of the + poet-laureate; accepted a medal of Augustus; and promised, without a + smile, to imitate the founder of the Roman monarchy. A false application + of the name and maxims of antiquity was the source of the hopes and + disappointments of Petrarch; yet he could not overlook the difference of + times and characters; the immeasurable distance between the first Cæsars + and a Bohemian prince, who by the favor of the clergy had been elected the + titular head of the German aristocracy. Instead of restoring to Rome her + glory and her provinces, he had bound himself by a secret treaty with the + pope, to evacuate the city on the day of his coronation; and his shameful + retreat was pursued by the reproaches of the patriot bard. <a + href="#linkLnote-56" name="linkLnoteref-56" id="linkLnoteref-56">56</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-56" id="linkLnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ The hopes and the + disappointment of Petrarch are agreeably described in his own words by the + French biographer, (Mémoires, tom. iii. p. 375—413;) but the deep, + though secret, wound was the coronation of Zanubi, the poet-laureate, by + Charles IV.] + </p> + <p> + After the loss of liberty and empire, his third and more humble wish was + to reconcile the shepherd with his flock; to recall the Roman bishop to + his ancient and peculiar diocese. In the fervor of youth, with the + authority of age, Petrarch addressed his exhortations to five successive + popes, and his eloquence was always inspired by the enthusiasm of + sentiment and the freedom of language. <a href="#linkLnote-57" + name="linkLnoteref-57" id="linkLnoteref-57">57</a> The son of a citizen of + Florence invariably preferred the country of his birth to that of his + education; and Italy, in his eyes, was the queen and garden of the world. + Amidst her domestic factions, she was doubtless superior to France both in + art and science, in wealth and politeness; but the difference could + scarcely support the epithet of barbarous, which he promiscuously bestows + on the countries beyond the Alps. Avignon, the mystic Babylon, the sink of + vice and corruption, was the object of his hatred and contempt; but he + forgets that her scandalous vices were not the growth of the soil, and + that in every residence they would adhere to the power and luxury of the + papal court. He confesses that the successor of St. Peter is the bishop of + the universal church; yet it was not on the banks of the Rhône, but of the + Tyber, that the apostle had fixed his everlasting throne; and while every + city in the Christian world was blessed with a bishop, the metropolis + alone was desolate and forlorn. Since the removal of the Holy See, the + sacred buildings of the Lateran and the Vatican, their altars and their + saints, were left in a state of poverty and decay; and Rome was often + painted under the image of a disconsolate matron, as if the wandering + husband could be reclaimed by the homely portrait of the age and + infirmities of his weeping spouse. <a href="#linkLnote-58" + name="linkLnoteref-58" id="linkLnoteref-58">58</a> But the cloud which + hung over the seven hills would be dispelled by the presence of their + lawful sovereign: eternal fame, the prosperity of Rome, and the peace of + Italy, would be the recompense of the pope who should dare to embrace this + generous resolution. Of the five whom Petrarch exhorted, the three first, + John the Twenty-second, Benedict the Twelfth, and Clement the Sixth, were + importuned or amused by the boldness of the orator; but the memorable + change which had been attempted by Urban the Fifth was finally + accomplished by Gregory the Eleventh. The execution of their design was + opposed by weighty and almost insuperable obstacles. A king of France, who + has deserved the epithet of wise, was unwilling to release them from a + local dependence: the cardinals, for the most part his subjects, were + attached to the language, manners, and climate of Avignon; to their + stately palaces; above all, to the wines of Burgundy. In their eyes, Italy + was foreign or hostile; and they reluctantly embarked at Marseilles, as if + they had been sold or banished into the land of the Saracens. Urban the + Fifth resided three years in the Vatican with safety and honor: his + sanctity was protected by a guard of two thousand horse; and the king of + Cyprus, the queen of Naples, and the emperors of the East and West, + devoutly saluted their common father in the chair of St. Peter. But the + joy of Petrarch and the Italians was soon turned into grief and + indignation. Some reasons of public or private moment, his own impatience + or the prayers of the cardinals, recalled Urban to France; and the + approaching election was saved from the tyrannic patriotism of the Romans. + The powers of heaven were interested in their cause: Bridget of Sweden, a + saint and pilgrim, disapproved the return, and foretold the death, of + Urban the Fifth: the migration of Gregory the Eleventh was encouraged by + St. Catharine of Sienna, the spouse of Christ and ambassadress of the + Florentines; and the popes themselves, the great masters of human + credulity, appear to have listened to these visionary females. <a + href="#linkLnote-59" name="linkLnoteref-59" id="linkLnoteref-59">59</a> + Yet those celestial admonitions were supported by some arguments of + temporal policy. The residents of Avignon had been invaded by hostile + violence: at the head of thirty thousand robbers, a hero had extorted + ransom and absolution from the vicar of Christ and the sacred college; and + the maxim of the French warriors, to spare the people and plunder the + church, was a new heresy of the most dangerous import. <a + href="#linkLnote-60" name="linkLnoteref-60" id="linkLnoteref-60">60</a> + While the pope was driven from Avignon, he was strenuously invited to + Rome. The senate and people acknowledged him as their lawful sovereign, + and laid at his feet the keys of the gates, the bridges, and the + fortresses; of the quarter at least beyond the Tyber. <a + href="#linkLnote-61" name="linkLnoteref-61" id="linkLnoteref-61">61</a> + But this loyal offer was accompanied by a declaration, that they could no + longer suffer the scandal and calamity of his absence; and that his + obstinacy would finally provoke them to revive and assert the primitive + right of election. The abbot of Mount Cassin had been consulted, whether + he would accept the triple crown <a href="#linkLnote-62" + name="linkLnoteref-62" id="linkLnoteref-62">62</a> from the clergy and + people: "I am a citizen of Rome," <a href="#linkLnote-63" + name="linkLnoteref-63" id="linkLnoteref-63">63</a> replied that venerable + ecclesiastic, "and my first law is, the voice of my country." <a + href="#linkLnote-64" name="linkLnoteref-64" id="linkLnoteref-64">64</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-57" id="linkLnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ See, in his accurate and + amusing biographer, the application of Petrarch and Rome to Benedict XII. + in the year 1334, (Mémoires, tom. i. p. 261—265,) to Clement VI. in + 1342, (tom. ii. p. 45—47,) and to Urban V. in 1366, (tom. iii. p. + 677—691:) his praise (p. 711—715) and excuse (p. 771) of the + last of these pontiffs. His angry controversy on the respective merits of + France and Italy may be found, Opp. p. 1068—1085.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-58" id="linkLnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Squalida sed quoniam facies, neglectaque cultû + Cæsaries; multisque malis lassata senectus + Eripuit solitam effigiem: vetus accipe nomen; + Roma vocor. (Carm. l. 2, p. 77.) +</pre> + <p class="foot"> + He spins this allegory beyond all measure or patience. The Epistles to + Urban V in prose are more simple and persuasive, (Senilium, l. vii. p. 811—827 + l. ix. epist. i. p. 844—854.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-59" id="linkLnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ I have not leisure to + expatiate on the legends of St. Bridget or St. Catharine, the last of + which might furnish some amusing stories. Their effect on the mind of + Gregory XI. is attested by the last solemn words of the dying pope, who + admonished the assistants, ut caverent ab hominibus, sive viris, sive + mulieribus, sub specie religionis loquentibus visiones sui capitis, quia + per tales ipse seductus, &c., (Baluz. Not ad Vit. Pap. Avenionensium, + tom. i. p. 1224.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-60" id="linkLnote-60"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 60 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-60">return</a>)<br /> [ This predatory + expedition is related by Froissard, (Chronique, tom. i. p. 230,) and in + the life of Du Guesclin, (Collection Générale des Mémoires Historiques, + tom. iv. c. 16, p. 107—113.) As early as the year 1361, the court of + Avignon had been molested by similar freebooters, who afterwards passed + the Alps, (Mémoires sur Pétrarque, tom. iii. p. 563—569.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-61" id="linkLnote-61"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 61 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-61">return</a>)<br /> [ Fleury alleges, from the + annals of Odericus Raynaldus, the original treaty which was signed the + 21st of December, 1376, between Gregory XI. and the Romans, (Hist. Ecclés. + tom. xx. p. 275.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-62" id="linkLnote-62"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 62 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-62">return</a>)<br /> [ The first crown or + regnum (Ducange, Gloss. Latin. tom. v. p. 702) on the episcopal mitre of + the popes, is ascribed to the gift of Constantine, or Clovis. The second + was added by Boniface VIII., as the emblem not only of a spiritual, but of + a temporal, kingdom. The three states of the church are represented by the + triple crown which was introduced by John XXII. or Benedict XII., + (Mémoires sur Pétrarque, tom. i. p. 258, 259.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-63" id="linkLnote-63"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 63 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-63">return</a>)<br /> [ Baluze (Not. ad Pap. + Avenion. tom. i. p. 1194, 1195) produces the original evidence which + attests the threats of the Roman ambassadors, and the resignation of the + abbot of Mount Cassin, qui, ultro se offerens, respondit se civem Romanum + esse, et illud velle quod ipsi vellent.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-64" id="linkLnote-64"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 64 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-64">return</a>)<br /> [ The return of the popes + from Avignon to Rome, and their reception by the people, are related in + the original lives of Urban V. and Gregory XI., in Baluze (Vit. Paparum + Avenionensium, tom. i. p. 363—486) and Muratori, (Script. Rer. + Italicarum, tom. iii. P. i. p. 613—712.) In the disputes of the + schism, every circumstance was severely, though partially, scrutinized; + more especially in the great inquest, which decided the obedience of + Castile, and to which Baluze, in his Notes, so often and so largely + appeals from a MS. volume in the Harley library, (p. 1281, &c.)] + </p> + <p> + If superstition will interpret an untimely death, <a href="#linkLnote-65" + name="linkLnoteref-65" id="linkLnoteref-65">65</a> if the merit of + counsels be judged from the event, the heavens may seem to frown on a + measure of such apparent season and propriety. Gregory the Eleventh did + not survive above fourteen months his return to the Vatican; and his + decease was followed by the great schism of the West, which distracted the + Latin church above forty years. The sacred college was then composed of + twenty-two cardinals: six of these had remained at Avignon; eleven + Frenchmen, one Spaniard, and four Italians, entered the conclave in the + usual form. Their choice was not yet limited to the purple; and their + unanimous votes acquiesced in the archbishop of Bari, a subject of Naples, + conspicuous for his zeal and learning, who ascended the throne of St. + Peter under the name of Urban the Sixth. The epistle of the sacred college + affirms his free, and regular, election; which had been inspired, as + usual, by the Holy Ghost; he was adored, invested, and crowned, with the + customary rites; his temporal authority was obeyed at Rome and Avignon, + and his ecclesiastical supremacy was acknowledged in the Latin world. + During several weeks, the cardinals attended their new master with the + fairest professions of attachment and loyalty; till the summer heats + permitted a decent escape from the city. But as soon as they were united + at Anagni and Fundi, in a place of security, they cast aside the mask, + accused their own falsehood and hypocrisy, excommunicated the apostate and + antichrist of Rome, and proceeded to a new election of Robert of Geneva, + Clement the Seventh, whom they announced to the nations as the true and + rightful vicar of Christ. Their first choice, an involuntary and illegal + act, was annulled by fear of death and the menaces of the Romans; and + their complaint is justified by the strong evidence of probability and + fact. The twelve French cardinals, above two thirds of the votes, were + masters of the election; and whatever might be their provincial + jealousies, it cannot fairly be presumed that they would have sacrificed + their right and interest to a foreign candidate, who would never restore + them to their native country. In the various, and often inconsistent, + narratives, <a href="#linkLnote-66" name="linkLnoteref-66" + id="linkLnoteref-66">66</a> the shades of popular violence are more darkly + or faintly colored: but the licentiousness of the seditious Romans was + inflamed by a sense of their privileges, and the danger of a second + emigration. The conclave was intimidated by the shouts, and encompassed by + the arms, of thirty thousand rebels; the bells of the Capitol and St. + Peter's rang an alarm: "Death, or an Italian pope!" was the universal cry; + the same threat was repeated by the twelve bannerets or chiefs of the + quarters, in the form of charitable advice; some preparations were made + for burning the obstinate cardinals; and had they chosen a Transalpine + subject, it is probable that they would never have departed alive from the + Vatican. The same constraint imposed the necessity of dissembling in the + eyes of Rome and of the world; the pride and cruelty of Urban presented a + more inevitable danger; and they soon discovered the features of the + tyrant, who could walk in his garden and recite his breviary, while he + heard from an adjacent chamber six cardinals groaning on the rack. His + inflexible zeal, which loudly censured their luxury and vice, would have + attached them to the stations and duties of their parishes at Rome; and + had he not fatally delayed a new promotion, the French cardinals would + have been reduced to a helpless minority in the sacred college. For these + reasons, and the hope of repassing the Alps, they rashly violated the + peace and unity of the church; and the merits of their double choice are + yet agitated in the Catholic schools. <a href="#linkLnote-67" + name="linkLnoteref-67" id="linkLnoteref-67">67</a> The vanity, rather than + the interest, of the nation determined the court and clergy of France. <a + href="#linkLnote-68" name="linkLnoteref-68" id="linkLnoteref-68">68</a> + The states of Savoy, Sicily, Cyprus, Arragon, Castille, Navarre, and + Scotland were inclined by their example and authority to the obedience of + Clement the Seventh, and after his decease, of Benedict the Thirteenth. + Rome and the principal states of Italy, Germany, Portugal, England, <a + href="#linkLnote-69" name="linkLnoteref-69" id="linkLnoteref-69">69</a> + the Low Countries, and the kingdoms of the North, adhered to the prior + election of Urban the Sixth, who was succeeded by Boniface the Ninth, + Innocent the Seventh, and Gregory the Twelfth. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-65" id="linkLnote-65"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 65 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-65">return</a>)<br /> [ Can the death of a good + man be esteemed a punishment by those who believe in the immortality of + the soul? They betray the instability of their faith. Yet as a mere + philosopher, I cannot agree with the Greeks, on oi Jeoi jilousin + apoqnhskei neoV, (Brunck, Poetæ Gnomici, p. 231.) See in Herodotus (l. i. + c. 31) the moral and pleasing tale of the Argive youths.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-66" id="linkLnote-66"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 66 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-66">return</a>)<br /> [ In the first book of the + Histoire du Concile de Pise, M. Lenfant has abridged and compared the + original narratives of the adherents of Urban and Clement, of the Italians + and Germans, the French and Spaniards. The latter appear to be the most + active and loquacious, and every fact and word in the original lives of + Gregory XI. and Clement VII. are supported in the Notes of their editor + Baluze.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-67" id="linkLnote-67"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 67 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-67">return</a>)<br /> [ The ordinal numbers of + the popes seems to decide the question against Clement VII. and Benedict + XIII., who are boldly stigmatized as antipopes by the Italians, while the + French are content with authorities and reasons to plead the cause of + doubt and toleration, (Baluz. in Præfat.) It is singular, or rather it is + not singular, that saints, visions and miracles should be common to both + parties.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-68" id="linkLnote-68"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 68 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-68">return</a>)<br /> [ Baluze strenuously + labors (Not. p. 1271—1280) to justify the pure and pious motives of + Charles V. king of France: he refused to hear the arguments of Urban; but + were not the Urbanists equally deaf to the reasons of Clement, &c.?] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-69" id="linkLnote-69"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 69 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-69">return</a>)<br /> [ An epistle, or + declamation, in the name of Edward III., (Baluz. Vit. Pap. Avenion. tom. + i. p. 553,) displays the zeal of the English nation against the + Clementines. Nor was their zeal confined to words: the bishop of Norwich + led a crusade of 60,000 bigots beyond sea, (Hume's History, vol. iii. p. + 57, 58.)] + </p> + <p> + From the banks of the Tyber and the Rhône, the hostile pontiffs + encountered each other with the pen and the sword: the civil and + ecclesiastical order of society was disturbed; and the Romans had their + full share of the mischiefs of which they may be arraigned as the primary + authors. <a href="#linkLnote-70" name="linkLnoteref-70" + id="linkLnoteref-70">70</a> They had vainly flattered themselves with the + hope of restoring the seat of the ecclesiastical monarchy, and of + relieving their poverty with the tributes and offerings of the nations; + but the separation of France and Spain diverted the stream of lucrative + devotion; nor could the loss be compensated by the two jubilees which were + crowded into the space of ten years. By the avocations of the schism, by + foreign arms, and popular tumults, Urban the Sixth and his three + successors were often compelled to interrupt their residence in the + Vatican. The Colonna and Ursini still exercised their deadly feuds: the + bannerets of Rome asserted and abused the privileges of a republic: the + vicars of Christ, who had levied a military force, chastised their + rebellion with the gibbet, the sword, and the dagger; and, in a friendly + conference, eleven deputies of the people were perfidiously murdered and + cast into the street. Since the invasion of Robert the Norman, the Romans + had pursued their domestic quarrels without the dangerous interposition of + a stranger. But in the disorders of the schism, an aspiring neighbor, + Ladislaus king of Naples, alternately supported and betrayed the pope and + the people; by the former he was declared <i>gonfalonier</i>, or general, + of the church, while the latter submitted to his choice the nomination of + their magistrates. Besieging Rome by land and water, he thrice entered the + gates as a Barbarian conqueror; profaned the altars, violated the virgins, + pillaged the merchants, performed his devotions at St. Peter's, and left a + garrison in the castle of St. Angelo. His arms were sometimes unfortunate, + and to a delay of three days he was indebted for his life and crown: but + Ladislaus triumphed in his turn; and it was only his premature death that + could save the metropolis and the ecclesiastical state from the ambitious + conqueror, who had assumed the title, or at least the powers, of king of + Rome. <a href="#linkLnote-71" name="linkLnoteref-71" id="linkLnoteref-71">71</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-70" id="linkLnote-70"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 70 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-70">return</a>)<br /> [ Besides the general + historians, the Diaries of Delphinus Gentilia Peter Antonius, and Stephen + Infessura, in the great collection of Muratori, represented the state and + misfortunes of Rome.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-71" id="linkLnote-71"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 71 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-71">return</a>)<br /> [ It is supposed by + Giannone (tom. iii. p. 292) that he styled himself Rex Romæ, a title + unknown to the world since the expulsion of Tarquin. But a nearer + inspection has justified the reading of Rex R<i>a</i>mæ, of Rama, an + obscure kingdom annexed to the crown of Hungary.] + </p> + <p> + I have not undertaken the ecclesiastical history of the schism; but Rome, + the object of these last chapters, is deeply interested in the disputed + succession of her sovereigns. The first counsels for the peace and union + of Christendom arose from the university of Paris, from the faculty of the + Sorbonne, whose doctors were esteemed, at least in the Gallican church, as + the most consummate masters of theological science. <a href="#linkLnote-72" + name="linkLnoteref-72" id="linkLnoteref-72">72</a> Prudently waiving all + invidious inquiry into the origin and merits of the dispute, they + proposed, as a healing measure, that the two pretenders of Rome and + Avignon should abdicate at the same time, after qualifying the cardinals + of the adverse factions to join in a legitimate election; and that the + nations should <i>subtract</i> <a href="#linkLnote-73" + name="linkLnoteref-73" id="linkLnoteref-73">73</a> their obedience, if + either of the competitor preferred his own interest to that of the public. + At each vacancy, these physicians of the church deprecated the mischiefs + of a hasty choice; but the policy of the conclave and the ambition of its + members were deaf to reason and entreaties; and whatsoever promises were + made, the pope could never be bound by the oaths of the cardinal. During + fifteen years, the pacific designs of the university were eluded by the + arts of the rival pontiffs, the scruples or passions of their adherents, + and the vicissitudes of French factions, that ruled the insanity of + Charles the Sixth. At length a vigorous resolution was embraced; and a + solemn embassy, of the titular patriarch of Alexandria, two archbishops, + five bishops, five abbots, three knights, and twenty doctors, was sent to + the courts of Avignon and Rome, to require, in the name of the church and + king, the abdication of the two pretenders, of Peter de Luna, who styled + himself Benedict the Thirteenth, and of Angelo Corrario, who assumed the + name of Gregory the Twelfth. For the ancient honor of Rome, and the + success of their commission, the ambassadors solicited a conference with + the magistrates of the city, whom they gratified by a positive + declaration, that the most Christian king did not entertain a wish of + transporting the holy see from the Vatican, which he considered as the + genuine and proper seat of the successor of St. Peter. In the name of the + senate and people, an eloquent Roman asserted their desire to cooperate in + the union of the church, deplored the temporal and spiritual calamities of + the long schism, and requested the protection of France against the arms + of the king of Naples. The answers of Benedict and Gregory were alike + edifying and alike deceitful; and, in evading the demand of their + abdication, the two rivals were animated by a common spirit. They agreed + on the necessity of a previous interview; but the time, the place, and the + manner, could never be ascertained by mutual consent. "If the one + advances," says a servant of Gregory, "the other retreats; the one appears + an animal fearful of the land, the other a creature apprehensive of the + water. And thus, for a short remnant of life and power, will these aged + priests endanger the peace and salvation of the Christian world." <a + href="#linkLnote-74" name="linkLnoteref-74" id="linkLnoteref-74">74</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-72" id="linkLnote-72"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 72 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-72">return</a>)<br /> [ The leading and decisive + part which France assumed in the schism is stated by Peter du Puis in a + separate history, extracted from authentic records, and inserted in the + seventh volume of the last and best edition of his friend Thuanus, (P. xi. + p. 110—184.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-73" id="linkLnote-73"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 73 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-73">return</a>)<br /> [ Of this measure, John + Gerson, a stout doctor, was the author of the champion. The proceedings of + the university of Paris and the Gallican church were often prompted by his + advice, and are copiously displayed in his theological writings, of which + Le Clerc (Bibliothèque Choisie, tom. x. p. 1—78) has given a + valuable extract. John Gerson acted an important part in the councils of + Pisa and Constance.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-74" id="linkLnote-74"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 74 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-74">return</a>)<br /> [ Leonardus Brunus + Aretinus, one of the revivers of classic learning in Italy, who, after + serving many years as secretary in the Roman court, retired to the + honorable office of chancellor of the republic of Florence, (Fabric. + Bibliot. Medii Ævi, tom. i. p. 290.) Lenfant has given the version of this + curious epistle, (Concile de Pise, tom. i. p. 192—195.)] + </p> + <p> + The Christian world was at length provoked by their obstinacy and fraud: + they were deserted by their cardinals, who embraced each other as friends + and colleagues; and their revolt was supported by a numerous assembly of + prelates and ambassadors. With equal justice, the council of Pisa deposed + the popes of Rome and Avignon; the conclave was unanimous in the choice of + Alexander the Fifth, and his vacant seat was soon filled by a similar + election of John the Twenty-third, the most profligate of mankind. But + instead of extinguishing the schism, the rashness of the French and + Italians had given a third pretender to the chair of St. Peter. Such new + claims of the synod and conclave were disputed; three kings, of Germany, + Hungary, and Naples, adhered to the cause of Gregory the Twelfth; and + Benedict the Thirteenth, himself a Spaniard, was acknowledged by the + devotion and patriotism of that powerful nation. The rash proceedings of + Pisa were corrected by the council of Constance; the emperor Sigismond + acted a conspicuous part as the advocate or protector of the Catholic + church; and the number and weight of civil and ecclesiastical members + might seem to constitute the states-general of Europe. Of the three popes, + John the Twenty-third was the first victim: he fled and was brought back a + prisoner: the most scandalous charges were suppressed; the vicar of Christ + was only accused of piracy, murder, rape, sodomy, and incest; and after + subscribing his own condemnation, he expiated in prison the imprudence of + trusting his person to a free city beyond the Alps. Gregory the Twelfth, + whose obedience was reduced to the narrow precincts of Rimini, descended + with more honor from the throne; and his ambassador convened the session, + in which he renounced the title and authority of lawful pope. To vanquish + the obstinacy of Benedict the Thirteenth or his adherents, the emperor in + person undertook a journey from Constance to Perpignan. The kings of + Castile, Arragon, Navarre, and Scotland, obtained an equal and honorable + treaty; with the concurrence of the Spaniards, Benedict was deposed by the + council; but the harmless old man was left in a solitary castle to + excommunicate twice each day the rebel kingdoms which had deserted his + cause. After thus eradicating the remains of the schism, the synod of + Constance proceeded with slow and cautious steps to elect the sovereign of + Rome and the head of the church. On this momentous occasion, the college + of twenty-three cardinals was fortified with thirty deputies; six of whom + were chosen in each of the five great nations of Christendom,—the + Italian, the German, the French, the Spanish, and the <i>English</i>: <a + href="#linkLnote-75" name="linkLnoteref-75" id="linkLnoteref-75">75</a> + the interference of strangers was softened by their generous preference of + an Italian and a Roman; and the hereditary, as well as personal, merit of + Otho Colonna recommended him to the conclave. Rome accepted with joy and + obedience the noblest of her sons; the ecclesiastical state was defended + by his powerful family; and the elevation of Martin the Fifth is the æra + of the restoration and establishment of the popes in the Vatican. <a + href="#linkLnote-76" name="linkLnoteref-76" id="linkLnoteref-76">76</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-75" id="linkLnote-75"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 75 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-75">return</a>)<br /> [ I cannot overlook this + great national cause, which was vigorously maintained by the English + ambassadors against those of France. The latter contended, that + Christendom was essentially distributed into the four great nations and + votes, of Italy, Germany, France, and Spain, and that the lesser kingdoms + (such as England, Denmark, Portugal, &c.) were comprehended under one + or other of these great divisions. The English asserted, that the British + islands, of which they were the head, should be considered as a fifth and + coördinate nation, with an equal vote; and every argument of truth or + fable was introduced to exalt the dignity of their country. Including + England, Scotland, Wales, the four kingdoms of Ireland, and the Orkneys, + the British Islands are decorated with eight royal crowns, and + discriminated by four or five languages, English, Welsh, Cornish, Scotch, + Irish, &c. The greater island from north to south measures 800 miles, + or 40 days' journey; and England alone contains 32 counties and 52,000 + parish churches, (a bold account!) besides cathedrals, colleges, priories, + and hospitals. They celebrate the mission of St. Joseph of Arimathea, the + birth of Constantine, and the legatine powers of the two primates, without + forgetting the testimony of Bartholomey de Glanville, (A.D. 1360,) who + reckons only four Christian kingdoms, 1. of Rome, 2. of Constantinople, 3. + of Ireland, which had been transferred to the English monarchs, and 4, of + Spain. Our countrymen prevailed in the council, but the victories of Henry + V. added much weight to their arguments. The adverse pleadings were found + at Constance by Sir Robert Wingfield, ambassador of Henry VIII. to the + emperor Maximilian I., and by him printed in 1517 at Louvain. From a + Leipsic MS. they are more correctly published in the collection of Von der + Hardt, tom. v.; but I have only seen Lenfant's abstract of these acts, + (Concile de Constance, tom. ii. p. 447, 453, &c.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-76" id="linkLnote-76"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 76 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-76">return</a>)<br /> [ The histories of the + three successive councils, Pisa, Constance, and Basil, have been written + with a tolerable degree of candor, industry, and elegance, by a Protestant + minister, M. Lenfant, who retired from France to Berlin. They form six + volumes in quarto; and as Basil is the worst, so Constance is the best, + part of the Collection.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkL2HCH0004" id="linkL2HCH0004"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXX: Final Settlement Of The Ecclesiastical State.—Part IV. + </h2> + <p> + The royal prerogative of coining money, which had been exercised near + three hundred years by the senate, was <i>first</i> resumed by Martin the + Fifth, <a href="#linkLnote-77" name="linkLnoteref-77" id="linkLnoteref-77">77</a> + and his image and superscription introduce the series of the papal medals. + Of his two immediate successors, Eugenius the Fourth was the <i>last</i> + pope expelled by the tumults of the Roman people, <a href="#linkLnote-78" + name="linkLnoteref-78" id="linkLnoteref-78">78</a> and Nicholas the Fifth, + the <i>last</i> who was importuned by the presence of a Roman emperor. <a + href="#linkLnote-79" name="linkLnoteref-79" id="linkLnoteref-79">79</a> I. + The conflict of Eugenius with the fathers of Basil, and the weight or + apprehension of a new excise, emboldened and provoked the Romans to usurp + the temporal government of the city. They rose in arms, elected seven + governors of the republic, and a constable of the Capitol; imprisoned the + pope's nephew; besieged his person in the palace; and shot volleys of + arrows into his bark as he escaped down the Tyber in the habit of a monk. + But he still possessed in the castle of St. Angelo a faithful garrison and + a train of artillery: their batteries incessantly thundered on the city, + and a bullet more dexterously pointed broke down the barricade of the + bridge, and scattered with a single shot the heroes of the republic. Their + constancy was exhausted by a rebellion of five months. Under the tyranny + of the Ghibeline nobles, the wisest patriots regretted the dominion of the + church; and their repentance was unanimous and effectual. The troops of + St. Peter again occupied the Capitol; the magistrates departed to their + homes; the most guilty were executed or exiled; and the legate, at the + head of two thousand foot and four thousand horse, was saluted as the + father of the city. The synods of Ferrara and Florence, the fear or + resentment of Eugenius, prolonged his absence: he was received by a + submissive people; but the pontiff understood from the acclamations of his + triumphal entry, that to secure their loyalty and his own repose, he must + grant without delay the abolition of the odious excise. II. Rome was + restored, adorned, and enlightened, by the peaceful reign of Nicholas the + Fifth. In the midst of these laudable occupations, the pope was alarmed by + the approach of Frederic the Third of Austria; though his fears could not + be justified by the character or the power of the Imperial candidate. + After drawing his military force to the metropolis, and imposing the best + security of oaths <a href="#linkLnote-80" name="linkLnoteref-80" + id="linkLnoteref-80">80</a> and treaties, Nicholas received with a smiling + countenance the faithful advocate and vassal of the church. So tame were + the times, so feeble was the Austrian, that the pomp of his coronation was + accomplished with order and harmony: but the superfluous honor was so + disgraceful to an independent nation, that his successors have excused + themselves from the toilsome pilgrimage to the Vatican; and rest their + Imperial title on the choice of the electors of Germany. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-77" id="linkLnote-77"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 77 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-77">return</a>)<br /> [ See the xxviith + Dissertation of the Antiquities of Muratori, and the 1st Instruction of + the Science des Medailles of the Père Joubert and the Baron de la Bastie. + The Metallic History of Martin V. and his successors has been composed by + two monks, Moulinet, a Frenchman, and Bonanni, an Italian: but I + understand, that the first part of the series is restored from more recent + coins.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-78" id="linkLnote-78"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 78 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-78">return</a>)<br /> [ Besides the Lives of + Eugenius IV., (Rerum Italic. tom. iii. P. i. p. 869, and tom. xxv. p. + 256,) the Diaries of Paul Petroni and Stephen Infessura are the best + original evidence for the revolt of the Romans against Eugenius IV. The + former, who lived at the time and on the spot, speaks the language of a + citizen, equally afraid of priestly and popular tyranny.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-79" id="linkLnote-79"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 79 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-79">return</a>)<br /> [ The coronation of + Frederic III. is described by Lenfant, (Concile de Basle, tom. ii. p. 276—288,) + from Æneas Sylvius, a spectator and actor in that splendid scene.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-80" id="linkLnote-80"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 80 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-80">return</a>)<br /> [ The oath of fidelity + imposed on the emperor by the pope is recorded and sanctified in the + Clementines, (l. ii. tit. ix.;) and Æneas Sylvius, who objects to this new + demand, could not foresee, that in a few years he should ascend the + throne, and imbibe the maxims, of Boniface VIII.] + </p> + <p> + A citizen has remarked, with pride and pleasure, that the king of the + Romans, after passing with a slight salute the cardinals and prelates who + met him at the gate, distinguished the dress and person of the senator of + Rome; and in this last farewell, the pageants of the empire and the + republic were clasped in a friendly embrace. <a href="#linkLnote-81" + name="linkLnoteref-81" id="linkLnoteref-81">81</a> According to the laws + of Rome, <a href="#linkLnote-82" name="linkLnoteref-82" + id="linkLnoteref-82">82</a> her first magistrate was required to be a + doctor of laws, an alien, of a place at least forty miles from the city; + with whose inhabitants he must not be connected in the third canonical + degree of blood or alliance. The election was annual: a severe scrutiny + was instituted into the conduct of the departing senator; nor could he be + recalled to the same office till after the expiration of two years. A + liberal salary of three thousand florins was assigned for his expense and + reward; and his public appearance represented the majesty of the republic. + His robes were of gold brocade or crimson velvet, or in the summer season + of a lighter silk: he bore in his hand an ivory sceptre; the sound of + trumpets announced his approach; and his solemn steps were preceded at + least by four lictors or attendants, whose red wands were enveloped with + bands or streamers of the golden color or livery of the city. His oath in + the Capitol proclaims his right and duty to observe and assert the laws, + to control the proud, to protect the poor, and to exercise justice and + mercy within the extent of his jurisdiction. In these useful functions he + was assisted by three learned strangers; the two <i>collaterals</i>, and + the judge of criminal appeals: their frequent trials of robberies, rapes, + and murders, are attested by the laws; and the weakness of these laws + connives at the licentiousness of private feuds and armed associations for + mutual defence. But the senator was confined to the administration of + justice: the Capitol, the treasury, and the government of the city and its + territory, were intrusted to the three <i>conservators</i>, who were + changed four times in each year: the militia of the thirteen regions + assembled under the banners of their respective chiefs, or <i>caporioni</i>; + and the first of these was distinguished by the name and dignity of the <i>prior</i>. + The popular legislature consisted of the secret and the common councils of + the Romans. The former was composed of the magistrates and their immediate + predecessors, with some fiscal and legal officers, and three classes of + thirteen, twenty-six, and forty, counsellors: amounting in the whole to + about one hundred and twenty persons. In the common council all male + citizens had a right to vote; and the value of their privilege was + enhanced by the care with which any foreigners were prevented from + usurping the title and character of Romans. The tumult of a democracy was + checked by wise and jealous precautions: except the magistrates, none + could propose a question; none were permitted to speak, except from an + open pulpit or tribunal; all disorderly acclamations were suppressed; the + sense of the majority was decided by a secret ballot; and their decrees + were promulgated in the venerable name of the Roman senate and people. It + would not be easy to assign a period in which this theory of government + has been reduced to accurate and constant practice, since the + establishment of order has been gradually connected with the decay of + liberty. But in the year one thousand five hundred and eighty the ancient + statutes were collected, methodized in three books, and adapted to present + use, under the pontificate, and with the approbation, of Gregory the + Thirteenth: <a href="#linkLnote-83" name="linkLnoteref-83" + id="linkLnoteref-83">83</a> this civil and criminal code is the modern law + of the city; and, if the popular assemblies have been abolished, a foreign + senator, with the three conservators, still resides in the palace of the + Capitol. <a href="#linkLnote-84" name="linkLnoteref-84" + id="linkLnoteref-84">84</a> The policy of the Cæsars has been repeated by + the popes; and the bishop of Rome affected to maintain the form of a + republic, while he reigned with the absolute powers of a temporal, as well + as a spiritual, monarch. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-81" id="linkLnote-81"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 81 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-81">return</a>)<br /> [ Lo senatore di Roma, + vestito di brocarto con quella beretta, e con quelle maniche, et ornamenti + di pelle, co' quali va alle feste di Testaccio e Nagone, might escape the + eye of Æneas Sylvius, but he is viewed with admiration and complacency by + the Roman citizen, (Diario di Stephano Infessura, p. 1133.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-82" id="linkLnote-82"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 82 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-82">return</a>)<br /> [ See, in the statutes of + Rome, the <i>senator and three judges</i>, (l. i. c. 3—14,) the <i>conservators</i>, + (l. i. c. 15, 16, 17, l. iii. c. 4,) the <i>caporioni</i> (l. i. c. 18, l. + iii. c. 8,) the <i>secret council</i>, (l. iii. c. 2,) the <i>common + council</i>, (l. iii. c. 3.) The title of <i>feuds</i>, <i>defiances</i>, + <i>acts of violence</i>, &c., is spread through many a chapter (c. 14—40) + of the second book.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-83" id="linkLnote-83"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 83 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-83">return</a>)<br /> [ <i>Statuta alm Urbis Rom + Auctoritate S. D. N. Gregorii XIII Pont. Max. a Senatu Populoque Rom. + reformata et edita. Rom, 1580, in folio</i>. The obsolete, repugnant + statutes of antiquity were confounded in five books, and Lucas Pætus, a + lawyer and antiquarian, was appointed to act as the modern Tribonian. Yet + I regret the old code, with the rugged crust of freedom and barbarism.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-84" id="linkLnote-84"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 84 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-84">return</a>)<br /> [ In my time (1765) and in + M. Grosley's, (Observations sur l'Italie torn. ii. p. 361,) the senator of + Rome was M. Bielke, a noble Swede and a proselyte to the Catholic faith. + The pope's right to appoint the senator and the conservator is implied, + rather than affirmed, in the statutes.] + </p> + <p> + It is an obvious truth, that the times must be suited to extraordinary + characters, and that the genius of Cromwell or Retz might now expire in + obscurity. The political enthusiasm of Rienzi had exalted him to a throne; + the same enthusiasm, in the next century, conducted his imitator to the + gallows. The birth of Stephen Porcaro was noble, his reputation spotless: + his tongue was armed with eloquence, his mind was enlightened with + learning; and he aspired, beyond the aim of vulgar ambition, to free his + country and immortalize his name. The dominion of priests is most odious + to a liberal spirit: every scruple was removed by the recent knowledge of + the fable and forgery of Constantine's donation; Petrarch was now the + oracle of the Italians; and as often as Porcaro revolved the ode which + describes the patriot and hero of Rome, he applied to himself the visions + of the prophetic bard. His first trial of the popular feelings was at the + funeral of Eugenius the Fourth: in an elaborate speech he called the + Romans to liberty and arms; and they listened with apparent pleasure, till + Porcaro was interrupted and answered by a grave advocate, who pleaded for + the church and state. By every law the seditious orator was guilty of + treason; but the benevolence of the new pontiff, who viewed his character + with pity and esteem, attempted by an honorable office to convert the + patriot into a friend. The inflexible Roman returned from Anagni with an + increase of reputation and zeal; and, on the first opportunity, the games + of the place Navona, he tried to inflame the casual dispute of some boys + and mechanics into a general rising of the people. Yet the humane Nicholas + was still averse to accept the forfeit of his life; and the traitor was + removed from the scene of temptation to Bologna, with a liberal allowance + for his support, and the easy obligation of presenting himself each day + before the governor of the city. But Porcaro had learned from the younger + Brutus, that with tyrants no faith or gratitude should be observed: the + exile declaimed against the arbitrary sentence; a party and a conspiracy + were gradually formed: his nephew, a daring youth, assembled a band of + volunteers; and on the appointed evening a feast was prepared at his house + for the friends of the republic. Their leader, who had escaped from + Bologna, appeared among them in a robe of purple and gold: his voice, his + countenance, his gestures, bespoke the man who had devoted his life or + death to the glorious cause. In a studied oration, he expiated on the + motives and the means of their enterprise; the name and liberties of Rome; + the sloth and pride of their ecclesiastical tyrants; the active or passive + consent of their fellow-citizens; three hundred soldiers, and four hundred + exiles, long exercised in arms or in wrongs; the license of revenge to + edge their swords, and a million of ducats to reward their victory. It + would be easy, (he said,) on the next day, the festival of the Epiphany, + to seize the pope and his cardinals, before the doors, or at the altar, of + St. Peter's; to lead them in chains under the walls of St. Angelo; to + extort by the threat of their instant death a surrender of the castle; to + ascend the vacant Capitol; to ring the alarm bell; and to restore in a + popular assembly the ancient republic of Rome. While he triumphed, he was + already betrayed. The senator, with a strong guard, invested the house: + the nephew of Porcaro cut his way through the crowd; but the unfortunate + Stephen was drawn from a chest, lamenting that his enemies had anticipated + by three hours the execution of his design. After such manifest and + repeated guilt, even the mercy of Nicholas was silent. Porcaro, and nine + of his accomplices, were hanged without the benefit of the sacraments; + and, amidst the fears and invectives of the papal court, the Romans + pitied, and almost applauded, these martyrs of their country. <a + href="#linkLnote-85" name="linkLnoteref-85" id="linkLnoteref-85">85</a> + But their applause was mute, their pity ineffectual, their liberty forever + extinct; and, if they have since risen in a vacancy of the throne or a + scarcity of bread, such accidental tumults may be found in the bosom of + the most abject servitude. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-85" id="linkLnote-85"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 85 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-85">return</a>)<br /> [ Besides the curious, + though concise, narrative of Machiavel, (Istoria Florentina, l. vi. Opere, + tom. i. p. 210, 211, edit. Londra, 1747, in 4to.) the Porcarian conspiracy + is related in the Diary of Stephen Infessura, (Rer. Ital. tom. iii. P. ii. + p. 1134, 1135,) and in a separate tract by Leo Baptista Alberti, (Rer. + Ital. tom. xxv. p. 609—614.) It is amusing to compare the style and + sentiments of the courtier and citizen. Facinus profecto quo.... neque + periculo horribilius, neque audaciâ detestabilius, neque crudelitate + tetrius, a quoquam perditissimo uspiam excogitatum sit.... Perdette la + vita quell' huomo da bene, e amatore dello bene e libertà di Roma.] + </p> + <p> + But the independence of the nobles, which was fomented by discord, + survived the freedom of the commons, which must be founded in union. A + privilege of rapine and oppression was long maintained by the barons of + Rome; their houses were a fortress and a sanctuary: and the ferocious + train of banditti and criminals whom they protected from the law repaid + the hospitality with the service of their swords and daggers. The private + interest of the pontiffs, or their nephews, sometimes involved them in + these domestic feuds. Under the reign of Sixtus the Fourth, Rome was + distracted by the battles and sieges of the rival houses: after the + conflagration of his palace, the prothonotary Colonna was tortured and + beheaded; and Savelli, his captive friend, was murdered on the spot, for + refusing to join in the acclamations of the victorious Ursini. <a + href="#linkLnote-86" name="linkLnoteref-86" id="linkLnoteref-86">86</a> + But the popes no longer trembled in the Vatican: they had strength to + command, if they had resolution to claim, the obedience of their subjects; + and the strangers, who observed these partial disorders, admired the easy + taxes and wise administration of the ecclesiastical state. <a + href="#linkLnote-87" name="linkLnoteref-87" id="linkLnoteref-87">87</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-86" id="linkLnote-86"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 86 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-86">return</a>)<br /> [ The disorders of Rome, + which were much inflamed by the partiality of Sixtus IV. are exposed in + the Diaries of two spectators, Stephen Infessura, and an anonymous + citizen. See the troubles of the year 1484, and the death of the + prothonotary Colonna, in tom. iii. P. ii. p. 1083, 1158.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-87" id="linkLnote-87"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 87 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-87">return</a>)<br /> [ Est toute la terre de + l'église troublée pour cette partialité (des Colonnes et des Ursins) come + nous dirions Luce et Grammont, ou en Hollande Houc et Caballan; et quand + ce ne seroit ce différend la terre de l'église seroit la plus heureuse + habitation pour les sujets qui soit dans toute le monde (car ils ne payent + ni tailles ni guères autres choses,) et seroient toujours bien conduits, + (car toujours les papes sont sages et bien consellies;) mais très souvent + en advient de grands et cruels meurtres et pilleries.] + </p> + <p> + The spiritual thunders of the Vatican depend on the force of opinion; and + if that opinion be supplanted by reason or passion, the sound may idly + waste itself in the air; and the helpless priest is exposed to the brutal + violence of a noble or a plebeian adversary. But after their return from + Avignon, the keys of St. Peter were guarded by the sword of St. Paul. Rome + was commanded by an impregnable citadel: the use of cannon is a powerful + engine against popular seditions: a regular force of cavalry and infantry + was enlisted under the banners of the pope: his ample revenues supplied + the resources of war: and, from the extent of his domain, he could bring + down on a rebellious city an army of hostile neighbors and loyal subjects. + <a href="#linkLnote-88" name="linkLnoteref-88" id="linkLnoteref-88">88</a> + Since the union of the duchies of Ferrara and Urbino, the ecclesiastical + state extends from the Mediterranean to the Adriatic, and from the + confines of Naples to the banks of the Po; and as early as the sixteenth + century, the greater part of that spacious and fruitful country + acknowledged the lawful claims and temporal sovereignty of the Roman + pontiffs. Their claims were readily deduced from the genuine, or fabulous, + donations of the darker ages: the successive steps of their final + settlement would engage us too far in the transactions of Italy, and even + of Europe; the crimes of Alexander the Sixth, the martial operations of + Julius the Second, and the liberal policy of Leo the Tenth, a theme which + has been adorned by the pens of the noblest historians of the times. <a + href="#linkLnote-89" name="linkLnoteref-89" id="linkLnoteref-89">89</a> In + the first period of their conquests, till the expedition of Charles the + Eighth, the popes might successfully wrestle with the adjacent princes and + states, whose military force was equal, or inferior, to their own. But as + soon as the monarchs of France, Germany and Spain, contended with gigantic + arms for the dominion of Italy, they supplied with art the deficiency of + strength; and concealed, in a labyrinth of wars and treaties, their + aspiring views, and the immortal hope of chasing the Barbarians beyond the + Alps. The nice balance of the Vatican was often subverted by the soldiers + of the North and West, who were united under the standard of Charles the + Fifth: the feeble and fluctuating policy of Clement the Seventh exposed + his person and dominions to the conqueror; and Rome was abandoned seven + months to a lawless army, more cruel and rapacious than the Goths and + Vandals. <a href="#linkLnote-90" name="linkLnoteref-90" + id="linkLnoteref-90">90</a> After this severe lesson, the popes contracted + their ambition, which was almost satisfied, resumed the character of a + common parent, and abstained from all offensive hostilities, except in a + hasty quarrel, when the vicar of Christ and the Turkish sultan were armed + at the same time against the kingdom of Naples. <a href="#linkLnote-91" + name="linkLnoteref-91" id="linkLnoteref-91">91</a> The French and Germans + at length withdrew from the field of battle: Milan, Naples, Sicily, + Sardinia, and the sea-coast of Tuscany, were firmly possessed by the + Spaniards; and it became their interest to maintain the peace and + dependence of Italy, which continued almost without disturbance from the + middle of the sixteenth to the opening of the eighteenth century. The + Vatican was swayed and protected by the religious policy of the Catholic + king: his prejudice and interest disposed him in every dispute to support + the prince against the people; and instead of the encouragement, the aid, + and the asylum, which they obtained from the adjacent states, the friends + of liberty, or the enemies of law, were enclosed on all sides within the + iron circle of despotism. The long habits of obedience and education + subdued the turbulent spirit of the nobles and commons of Rome. The barons + forgot the arms and factions of their ancestors, and insensibly became the + servants of luxury and government. Instead of maintaining a crowd of + tenants and followers, the produce of their estates was consumed in the + private expenses which multiply the pleasures, and diminish the power, of + the lord. <a href="#linkLnote-92" name="linkLnoteref-92" + id="linkLnoteref-92">92</a> The Colonna and Ursini vied with each other in + the decoration of their palaces and chapels; and their antique splendor + was rivalled or surpassed by the sudden opulence of the papal families. In + Rome the voice of freedom and discord is no longer heard; and, instead of + the foaming torrent, a smooth and stagnant lake reflects the image of + idleness and servitude. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-88" id="linkLnote-88"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 88 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-88">return</a>)<br /> [ By the conomy of Sixtus + V. the revenue of the ecclesiastical state was raised to two millions and + a half of Roman crowns, (Vita, tom. ii. p. 291—296;) and so regular + was the military establishment, that in one month Clement VIII. could + invade the duchy of Ferrara with three thousand horse and twenty thousand + foot, (tom. iii. p. 64) Since that time (A.D. 1597) the papal arms are + happily rusted: but the revenue must have gained some nominal increase. * + Note: On the financial measures of Sixtus V. see Ranke, Dio Römischen + Päpste, i. p. 459.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-89" id="linkLnote-89"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 89 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-89">return</a>)<br /> [ More especially by + Guicciardini and Machiavel; in the general history of the former, in the + Florentine history, the Prince, and the political discourses of the + latter. These, with their worthy successors, Fra Paolo and Davila, were + justly esteemed the first historians of modern languages, till, in the + present age, Scotland arose, to dispute the prize with Italy herself.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-90" id="linkLnote-90"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 90 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-90">return</a>)<br /> [ In the history of the + Gothic siege, I have compared the Barbarians with the subjects of Charles + V., (vol. iii. p. 289, 290;) an anticipation, which, like that of the + Tartar conquests, I indulged with the less scruple, as I could scarcely + hope to reach the conclusion of my work.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-91" id="linkLnote-91"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 91 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-91">return</a>)<br /> [ The ambitious and feeble + hostilities of the Caraffa pope, Paul IV. may be seen in Thuanus (l. xvi.—xviii.) + and Giannone, (tom. iv p. 149—163.) Those Catholic bigots, Philip + II. and the duke of Alva, presumed to separate the Roman prince from the + vicar of Christ, yet the holy character, which would have sanctified his + victory was decently applied to protect his defeat. * Note: But compare + Ranke, Die Römischen Päpste, i. p. 289.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-92" id="linkLnote-92"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 92 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-92">return</a>)<br /> [ This gradual change of + manners and expense is admirably explained by Dr. Adam Smith, (Wealth of + Nations, vol. i. p. 495—504,) who proves, perhaps too severely, that + the most salutary effects have flowed from the meanest and most selfish + causes.] + </p> + <p> + A Christian, a philosopher, <a href="#linkLnote-93" name="linkLnoteref-93" + id="linkLnoteref-93">93</a> and a patriot, will be equally scandalized by + the temporal kingdom of the clergy; and the local majesty of Rome, the + remembrance of her consuls and triumphs, may seem to imbitter the sense, + and aggravate the shame, of her slavery. If we calmly weigh the merits and + defects of the ecclesiastical government, it may be praised in its present + state, as a mild, decent, and tranquil system, exempt from the dangers of + a minority, the sallies of youth, the expenses of luxury, and the + calamities of war. But these advantages are overbalanced by a frequent, + perhaps a septennial, election of a sovereign, who is seldom a native of + the country; the reign of a <i>young</i> statesman of threescore, in the + decline of his life and abilities, without hope to accomplish, and without + children to inherit, the labors of his transitory reign. The successful + candidate is drawn from the church, and even the convent; from the mode of + education and life the most adverse to reason, humanity, and freedom. In + the trammels of servile faith, he has learned to believe because it is + absurd, to revere all that is contemptible, and to despise whatever might + deserve the esteem of a rational being; to punish error as a crime, to + reward mortification and celibacy as the first of virtues; to place the + saints of the calendar <a href="#linkLnote-94" name="linkLnoteref-94" + id="linkLnoteref-94">94</a> above the heroes of Rome and the sages of + Athens; and to consider the missal, or the crucifix, as more useful + instruments than the plough or the loom. In the office of nuncio, or the + rank of cardinal, he may acquire some knowledge of the world, but the + primitive stain will adhere to his mind and manners: from study and + experience he may suspect the mystery of his profession; but the + sacerdotal artist will imbibe some portion of the bigotry which he + inculcates. The genius of Sixtus the Fifth <a href="#linkLnote-95" + name="linkLnoteref-95" id="linkLnoteref-95">95</a> burst from the gloom of + a Franciscan cloister. In a reign of five years, he exterminated the + outlaws and banditti, abolished the <i>profane</i> sanctuaries of Rome, <a + href="#linkLnote-96" name="linkLnoteref-96" id="linkLnoteref-96">96</a> + formed a naval and military force, restored and emulated the monuments of + antiquity, and after a liberal use and large increase of the revenue, left + five millions of crowns in the castle of St. Angelo. But his justice was + sullied with cruelty, his activity was prompted by the ambition of + conquest: after his decease the abuses revived; the treasure was + dissipated; he entailed on posterity thirty-five new taxes and the + venality of offices; and, after his death, his statue was demolished by an + ungrateful, or an injured, people. <a href="#linkLnote-97" + name="linkLnoteref-97" id="linkLnoteref-97">97</a> The wild and original + character of Sixtus the Fifth stands alone in the series of the pontiffs; + the maxims and effects of their temporal government may be collected from + the positive and comparative view of the arts and philosophy, the + agriculture and trade, the wealth and population, of the ecclesiastical + state. For myself, it is my wish to depart in charity with all mankind, + nor am I willing, in these last moments, to offend even the pope and + clergy of Rome. <a href="#linkLnote-98" name="linkLnoteref-98" + id="linkLnoteref-98">98</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-93" id="linkLnote-93"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 93 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-93">return</a>)<br /> [ Mr. Hume (Hist. of + England, vol. i. p. 389) too hastily conclude that if the civil and + ecclesiastical powers be united in the same person, it is of little moment + whether he be styled prince or prelate since the temporal character will + always predominate.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-94" id="linkLnote-94"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 94 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-94">return</a>)<br /> [ A Protestant may disdain + the unworthy preference of St. Francis or St. Dominic, but he will not + rashly condemn the zeal or judgment of Sixtus V., who placed the statues + of the apostles St. Peter and St. Paul on the vacant columns of Trajan and + Antonine.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-95" id="linkLnote-95"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 95 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-95">return</a>)<br /> [ A wandering Italian, + Gregorio Leti, has given the Vita di Sisto-Quinto, (Amstel. 1721, 3 vols. + in 12mo.,) a copious and amusing work, but which does not command our + absolute confidence. Yet the character of the man, and the principal + facts, are supported by the annals of Spondanus and Muratori, (A.D. 1585—1590,) + and the contemporary history of the great Thuanus, (l. lxxxii. c. 1, 2, l. + lxxxiv. c. 10, l. c. c. 8.) * Note: The industry of M. Ranke has + discovered the document, a kind of scandalous chronicle of the time, from + which Leti wrought up his amusing romances. See also M. Ranke's + observations on the Life of Sixtus. by Tempesti, b. iii. p. 317, 324.— + M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-96" id="linkLnote-96"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 96 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-96">return</a>)<br /> [ These privileged places, + the <i>quartieri</i> or <i>franchises</i>, were adopted from the Roman + nobles by the foreign ministers. Julius II. had once abolished the + abominandum et detestandum franchitiarum hujusmodi nomen: and after Sixtus + V. they again revived. I cannot discern either the justice or magnanimity + of Louis XIV., who, in 1687, sent his ambassador, the marquis de Lavardin, + to Rome, with an armed force of a thousand officers, guards, and + domestics, to maintain this iniquitous claim, and insult Pope Innocent XI. + in the heart of his capital, (Vita di Sisto V. tom. iii. p. 260—278. + Muratori, Annali d'Italia, tom. xv. p. 494—496, and Voltaire, Siecle + de Louis XIV. tom. i. c. 14, p. 58, 59.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-97" id="linkLnote-97"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 97 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-97">return</a>)<br /> [ This outrage produced a + decree, which was inscribed on marble, and placed in the Capitol. It is + expressed in a style of manly simplicity and freedom: Si quis, sive + privatus, sive magistratum gerens de collocandâ <i>vivo</i> pontifici + statuâ mentionem facere ausit, legitimo S. P. Q. R. decreto in perpetuum + infamis et publicorum munerum expers esto. MDXC. mense Augusto, (Vita di + Sisto V. tom. iii. p. 469.) I believe that this decree is still observed, + and I know that every monarch who deserves a statue should himself impose + the prohibition.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkLnote-98" id="linkLnote-98"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 98 (<a href="#linkLnoteref-98">return</a>)<br /> [ The histories of the + church, Italy, and Christendom, have contributed to the chapter which I + now conclude. In the original Lives of the Popes, we often discover the + city and republic of Rome: and the events of the xivth and xvth centuries + are preserved in the rude and domestic chronicles which I have carefully + inspected, and shall recapitulate in the order of time. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1. Monaldeschi (Ludovici Boncomitis) Fragmenta Annalium Roman. A.D. 1328, + in the Scriptores Rerum Italicarum of Muratori, tom. xii. p. 525. N. B. + The credit of this fragment is somewhat hurt by a singular interpolation, + in which the author relates his own death at the age of 115 years. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2. Fragmenta Historiæ Romanæ (vulgo Thomas Fortifioccæ) in Romana Dialecto + vulgari, (A.D. 1327—1354, in Muratori, Antiquitat. Medii Ævi Italiæ, + tom. iii. p. 247—548;) the authentic groundwork of the history of + Rienzi. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3. Delphini (Gentilis) Diarium Romanum, (A.D. 1370—1410,) in the + Rerum Italicarum, tom. iii. P. ii. p. 846. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4. Antonii (Petri) Diarium Rom., (A.D. 1404—1417,) tom. xxiv. p. + 699. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5. Petroni (Pauli) Miscellanea Historica Romana, (A.D. 1433—1446,) + tom. xxiv. p. 1101. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6. Volaterrani (Jacob.) Diarium Rom., (A.D. 1472—1484,) tom. xxiii + p. 81. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7. Anonymi Diarium Urbis Romæ, (A.D. 1481—1492,) tom. iii. P. ii. p. + 1069. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8. Infessuræ (Stephani) Diarium Romanum, (A.D. 1294, or 1378—1494,) + tom. iii. P. ii. p. 1109. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9. Historia Arcana Alexandri VI. sive Excerpta ex Diario Joh. Burcardi, + (A.D. 1492—1503,) edita a Godefr. Gulielm. Leibnizio, Hanover, 697, + in 14to. The large and valuable Journal of Burcard might be completed from + the MSS. in different libraries of Italy and France, (M. de Foncemagne, in + the Mémoires de l'Acad. des Inscrip. tom. xvii. p. 597—606.) + </p> + <p class="foot"> + Except the last, all these fragments and diaries are inserted in the + Collections of Muratori, my guide and master in the history of Italy. His + country, and the public, are indebted to him for the following works on + that subject: 1. <i>Rerum Italicarum Scriptores</i>, (A.D. 500—1500,) + <i>quorum potissima pars nunc primum in lucem prodit</i>, &c., xxviii. + vols. in folio, Milan, 1723—1738, 1751. A volume of chronological + and alphabetical tables is still wanting as a key to this great work, + which is yet in a disorderly and defective state. 2. <i>Antiquitates + Italiæ Medii Ævi</i>, vi. vols. in folio, Milan, 1738—1743, in lxxv. + curious dissertations, on the manners, government, religion, &c., of + the Italians of the darker ages, with a large supplement of charters, + chronicles, &c. 3. <i>Dissertazioni sopra le Antiquita Italiane</i>, + iii. vols. in 4to., Milano, 1751, a free version by the author, which may + be quoted with the same confidence as the Latin text of the Antiquities. + <i>Annali d' Italia</i>, xviii. vols. in octavo, Milan, 1753—1756, a + dry, though accurate and useful, abridgment of the history of Italy, from + the birth of Christ to the middle of the xviiith century. 5. <i>Dell' + Antichita Estense ed Italiane</i>, ii. vols. in folio, Modena, 1717, 1740. + In the history of this illustrious race, the parent of our Brunswick + kings, the critic is not seduced by the loyalty or gratitude of the + subject. In all his works, Muratori approves himself a diligent and + laborious writer, who aspires above the prejudices of a Catholic priest. + He was born in the year 1672, and died in the year 1750, after passing + near 60 years in the libraries of Milan and Modena, (Vita del Proposto + Ludovico Antonio Muratori, by his nephew and successor Gian. Francesco + Soli Muratori Venezia, 1756 m 4to.)] + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> ======================= <a name="linkM2HCH0001" + id="linkM2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + Chapter LXXI: Prospect Of The Ruins Of Rome In The Fifteenth Century.—Part + I. + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Prospect Of The Ruins Of Rome In The Fifteenth Century.— + Four Causes Of Decay And Destruction.—Example Of The + Coliseum.—Renovation Of The City.—Conclusion Of The Whole + Work. +</pre> + <p> + In the last days of Pope Eugenius the Fourth, <a href="#linkMnote-101" + name="linkMnoteref-101" id="linkMnoteref-101">101</a> two of his servants, + the learned Poggius <a href="#linkMnote-1" name="linkMnoteref-1" + id="linkMnoteref-1">1</a> and a friend, ascended the Capitoline hill; + reposed themselves among the ruins of columns and temples; and viewed from + that commanding spot the wide and various prospect of desolation. <a + href="#linkMnote-2" name="linkMnoteref-2" id="linkMnoteref-2">2</a> The + place and the object gave ample scope for moralizing on the vicissitudes + of fortune, which spares neither man nor the proudest of his works, which + buries empires and cities in a common grave; and it was agreed, that in + proportion to her former greatness, the fall of Rome was the more awful + and deplorable. "Her primeval state, such as she might appear in a remote + age, when Evander entertained the stranger of Troy, <a href="#linkMnote-3" + name="linkMnoteref-3" id="linkMnoteref-3">3</a> has been delineated by the + fancy of Virgil. This Tarpeian rock was then a savage and solitary + thicket: in the time of the poet, it was crowned with the golden roofs of + a temple; the temple is overthrown, the gold has been pillaged, the wheel + of fortune has accomplished her revolution, and the sacred ground is again + disfigured with thorns and brambles. The hill of the Capitol, on which we + sit, was formerly the head of the Roman empire, the citadel of the earth, + the terror of kings; illustrated by the footsteps of so many triumphs, + enriched with the spoils and tributes of so many nations. This spectacle + of the world, how is it fallen! how changed! how defaced! The path of + victory is obliterated by vines, and the benches of the senators are + concealed by a dunghill. Cast your eyes on the Palatine hill, and seek + among the shapeless and enormous fragments the marble theatre, the + obelisks, the colossal statues, the porticos of Nero's palace: survey the + other hills of the city, the vacant space is interrupted only by ruins and + gardens. The forum of the Roman people, where they assembled to enact + their laws and elect their magistrates, is now enclosed for the + cultivation of pot-herbs, or thrown open for the reception of swine and + buffaloes. The public and private edifices, that were founded for + eternity, lie prostrate, naked, and broken, like the limbs of a mighty + giant; and the ruin is the more visible, from the stupendous relics that + have survived the injuries of time and fortune." <a href="#linkMnote-4" + name="linkMnoteref-4" id="linkMnoteref-4">4</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-101" id="linkMnote-101"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 101 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-101">return</a>)<br /> [ It should be Pope + Martin the Fifth. See Gibbon's own Mnote, ch. lxv, Mnote 51 and Hobhouse, + Illustrations of Childe Harold, p. 155.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-1" id="linkMnote-1"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ I have already (Mnotes 50, + 51, on chap. lxv.) mentioned the age, character, and writings of Poggius; + and particularly noticed the date of this elegant moral lecture on the + varieties of fortune.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-2" id="linkMnote-2"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ Consedimus in ipsis + Tarpeiæ arcis ruinis, pone ingens portæ cujusdam, ut puto, templi, + marmoreum limen, plurimasque passim confractas columnas, unde magnâ ex + parte prospectus urbis patet, (p. 5.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-3" id="linkMnote-3"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ Æneid viii. 97—369. + This ancient picture, so artfully introduced, and so exquisitely finished, + must have been highly interesting to an inhabitant of Rome; and our early + studies allow us to sympathize in the feelings of a Roman.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-4" id="linkMnote-4"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ Capitolium adeo.... + immutatum ut vineæ in senatorum subsellia successerint, stercorum ac + purgamentorum receptaculum factum. Respice ad Palatinum montem..... vasta + rudera.... cæteros colles perlustra omnia vacua ædificiis, ruinis + vineisque oppleta conspicies, (Poggius, de Varietat. Fortunæ p. 21.)] + </p> + <p> + These relics are minutely described by Poggius, one of the first who + raised his eyes from the monuments of legendary, to those of classic, + superstition. <a href="#linkMnote-5" name="linkMnoteref-5" + id="linkMnoteref-5">5</a> <i>1.</i>Besides a bridge, an arch, a sepulchre, + and the pyramid of Cestius, he could discern, of the age of the republic, + a double row of vaults, in the salt-office of the Capitol, which were + inscribed with the name and munificence of Catulus. <i>2.</i> Eleven + temples were visible in some degree, from the perfect form of the + Pantheon, to the three arches and a marble column of the temple of Peace, + which Vespasian erected after the civil wars and the Jewish triumph. <i>3.</i> + Of the number, which he rashly defines, of seven <i>thermæ</i>, or public + baths, none were sufficiently entire to represent the use and distribution + of the several parts: but those of Diocletian and Antoninus Caracalla + still retained the titles of the founders, and astonished the curious + spectator, who, in observing their solidity and extent, the variety of + marbles, the size and multitude of the columns, compared the labor and + expense with the use and importance. Of the baths of Constantine, of + Alexander, of Domitian, or rather of Titus, some vestige might yet be + found. <i>4.</i> The triumphal arches of Titus, Severus, and Constantine, + were entire, both the structure and the inscriptions; a falling fragment + was honored with the name of Trajan; and two arches, then extant, in the + Flaminian way, have been ascribed to the baser memory of Faustina and + Gallienus. <a href="#linkMnote-501" name="linkMnoteref-501" + id="linkMnoteref-501">501</a> <i>5.</i> After the wonder of the Coliseum, + Poggius might have overlooked small amphitheatre of brick, most probably + for the use of the prætorian camp: the theatres of Marcellus and Pompey + were occupied in a great measure by public and private buildings; and in + the Circus, Agonalis and Maximus, little more than the situation and the + form could be investigated. <i>6.</i> The columns of Trajan and Antonine + were still erect; but the Egyptian obelisks were broken or buried. A + people of gods and heroes, the workmanship of art, was reduced to one + equestrian figure of gilt brass, and to five marble statues, of which the + most conspicuous were the two horses of Phidias and Praxiteles. <i>7.</i> + The two mausoleums or sepulchres of Augustus and Hadrian could not totally + be lost: but the former was only visible as a mound of earth; and the + latter, the castle of St. Angelo, had acquired the name and appearance of + a modern fortress. With the addition of some separate and nameless + columns, such were the remains of the ancient city; for the marks of a + more recent structure might be detected in the walls, which formed a + circumference of ten miles, included three hundred and seventy-nine + turrets, and opened into the country by thirteen gates. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-5" id="linkMnote-5"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ See Poggius, p. 8—22.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-501" id="linkMnote-501"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 501 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-501">return</a>)<br /> [ One was in the Via + Nomentana; est alter præterea Gallieno principi dicatus, ut superscriptio + indicat, <i>Viâ Nomentana</i>. Hobhouse, p. 154. Poggio likewise mentions + the building which Gibbon ambiguously says be "might have overlooked."—M.] + </p> + <p> + This melancholy picture was drawn above nine hundred years after the fall + of the Western empire, and even of the Gothic kingdom of Italy. A long + period of distress and anarchy, in which empire, and arts, and riches had + migrated from the banks of the Tyber, was incapable of restoring or + adorning the city; and, as all that is human must retrograde if it do not + advance, every successive age must have hastened the ruin of the works of + antiquity. To measure the progress of decay, and to ascertain, at each + æra, the state of each edifice, would be an endless and a useless labor; + and I shall content myself with two observations, which will introduce a + short inquiry into the general causes and effects. <i>1.</i> Two hundred + years before the eloquent complaint of Poggius, an anonymous writer + composed a description of Rome. <a href="#linkMnote-6" + name="linkMnoteref-6" id="linkMnoteref-6">6</a> His ignorance may repeat + the same objects under strange and fabulous names. Yet this barbarous + topographer had eyes and ears; he could observe the visible remains; he + could listen to the tradition of the people; and he distinctly enumerates + seven theatres, eleven baths, twelve arches, and eighteen palaces, of + which many had disappeared before the time of Poggius. It is apparent, + that many stately monuments of antiquity survived till a late period, <a + href="#linkMnote-7" name="linkMnoteref-7" id="linkMnoteref-7">7</a> and + that the principles of destruction acted with vigorous and increasing + energy in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. <i>2.</i> The same + reflection must be applied to the three last ages; and we should vainly + seek the Septizonium of Severus; <a href="#linkMnote-8" + name="linkMnoteref-8" id="linkMnoteref-8">8</a> which is celebrated by + Petrarch and the antiquarians of the sixteenth century. While the Roman + edifices were still entire, the first blows, however weighty and + impetuous, were resisted by the solidity of the mass and the harmony of + the parts; but the slightest touch would precipitate the fragments of + arches and columns, that already nodded to their fall. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-6" id="linkMnote-6"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ Liber de Mirabilibus Romæ + ex Registro Nicolai Cardinalis de Arragoniâ in Bibliothecâ St. Isidori + Armario IV., No. 69. This treatise, with some short but pertinent Mnotes, + has been published by Montfaucon, (Diarium Italicum, p. 283—301,) + who thus delivers his own critical opinion: Scriptor xiiimi. circiter + sæculi, ut ibidem notatur; antiquariæ rei imperitus et, ut ab illo ævo, + nugis et anilibus fabellis refertus: sed, quia monumenta, quæ iis + temporibus Romæ supererant pro modulo recenset, non parum inde lucis + mutuabitur qui Romanis antiquitatibus indagandis operam navabit, (p. + 283.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-7" id="linkMnote-7"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ The Père Mabillon + (Analecta, tom. iv. p. 502) has published an anonymous pilgrim of the ixth + century, who, in his visit round the churches and holy places at Rome, + touches on several buildings, especially porticos, which had disappeared + before the xiiith century.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-8" id="linkMnote-8"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ On the Septizonium, see + the Mémoires sur Pétrarque, (tom. i. p. 325,) Donatus, (p. 338,) and + Nardini, (p. 117, 414.)] + </p> + <p> + After a diligent inquiry, I can discern four principal causes of the ruin + of Rome, which continued to operate in a period of more than a thousand + years. I. The injuries of time and nature. II. The hostile attacks of the + Barbarians and Christians. III. The use and abuse of the materials. And, + IV. The domestic quarrels of the Romans. + </p> + <p> + I. The art of man is able to construct monuments far more permanent than + the narrow span of his own existence; yet these monuments, like himself, + are perishable and frail; and in the boundless annals of time, his life + and his labors must equally be measured as a fleeting moment. Of a simple + and solid edifice, it is not easy, however, to circumscribe the duration. + As the wonders of ancient days, the pyramids <a href="#linkMnote-9" + name="linkMnoteref-9" id="linkMnoteref-9">9</a> attracted the curiosity of + the ancients: a hundred generations, the leaves of autumn, have dropped <a + href="#linkMnote-10" name="linkMnoteref-10" id="linkMnoteref-10">10</a> + into the grave; and after the fall of the Pharaohs and Ptolemies, the + Cæsars and caliphs, the same pyramids stand erect and unshaken above the + floods of the Nile. A complex figure of various and minute parts to more + accessible to injury and decay; and the silent lapse of time is often + accelerated by hurricanes and earthquakes, by fires and inundations. The + air and earth have doubtless been shaken; and the lofty turrets of Rome + have tottered from their foundations; but the seven hills do not appear to + be placed on the great cavities of the globe; nor has the city, in any + age, been exposed to the convulsions of nature, which, in the climate of + Antioch, Lisbon, or Lima, have crumbled in a few moments the works of ages + into dust. Fire is the most powerful agent of life and death: the rapid + mischief may be kindled and propagated by the industry or negligence of + mankind; and every period of the Roman annals is marked by the repetition + of similar calamities. A memorable conflagration, the guilt or misfortune + of Nero's reign, continued, though with unequal fury, either six or nine + days. <a href="#linkMnote-11" name="linkMnoteref-11" id="linkMnoteref-11">11</a> + Innumerable buildings, crowded in close and crooked streets, supplied + perpetual fuel for the flames; and when they ceased, four only of the + fourteen regions were left entire; three were totally destroyed, and seven + were deformed by the relics of smoking and lacerated edifices. <a + href="#linkMnote-12" name="linkMnoteref-12" id="linkMnoteref-12">12</a> In + the full meridian of empire, the metropolis arose with fresh beauty from + her ashes; yet the memory of the old deplored their irreparable losses, + the arts of Greece, the trophies of victory, the monuments of primitive or + fabulous antiquity. In the days of distress and anarchy, every wound is + mortal, every fall irretrievable; nor can the damage be restored either by + the public care of government, or the activity of private interest. Yet + two causes may be alleged, which render the calamity of fire more + destructive to a flourishing than a decayed city. <i>1.</i> The more + combustible materials of brick, timber, and metals, are first melted or + consumed; but the flames may play without injury or effect on the naked + walls, and massy arches, that have been despoiled of their ornaments. <i>2.</i> + It is among the common and plebeian habitations, that a mischievous spark + is most easily blown to a conflagration; but as soon as they are devoured, + the greater edifices, which have resisted or escaped, are left as so many + islands in a state of solitude and safety. From her situation, Rome is + exposed to the danger of frequent inundations. Without excepting the + Tyber, the rivers that descend from either side of the Apennine have a + short and irregular course; a shallow stream in the summer heats; an + impetuous torrent, when it is swelled in the spring or winter, by the fall + of rain, and the melting of the snows. When the current is repelled from + the sea by adverse winds, when the ordinary bed is inadequate to the + weight of waters, they rise above the banks, and overspread, without + limits or control, the plains and cities of the adjacent country. Soon + after the triumph of the first Punic war, the Tyber was increased by + unusual rains; and the inundation, surpassing all former measure of time + and place, destroyed all the buildings that were situated below the hills + of Rome. According to the variety of ground, the same mischief was + produced by different means; and the edifices were either swept away by + the sudden impulse, or dissolved and undermined by the long continuance, + of the flood. <a href="#linkMnote-13" name="linkMnoteref-13" + id="linkMnoteref-13">13</a> Under the reign of Augustus, the same calamity + was renewed: the lawless river overturned the palaces and temples on its + banks; <a href="#linkMnote-14" name="linkMnoteref-14" id="linkMnoteref-14">14</a> + and, after the labors of the emperor in cleansing and widening the bed + that was encumbered with ruins, <a href="#linkMnote-15" + name="linkMnoteref-15" id="linkMnoteref-15">15</a> the vigilance of his + successors was exercised by similar dangers and designs. The project of + diverting into new channels the Tyber itself, or some of the dependent + streams, was long opposed by superstition and local interests; <a + href="#linkMnote-16" name="linkMnoteref-16" id="linkMnoteref-16">16</a> + nor did the use compensate the toil and cost of the tardy and imperfect + execution. The servitude of rivers is the noblest and most important + victory which man has obtained over the licentiousness of nature; <a + href="#linkMnote-17" name="linkMnoteref-17" id="linkMnoteref-17">17</a> + and if such were the ravages of the Tyber under a firm and active + government, what could oppose, or who can enumerate, the injuries of the + city, after the fall of the Western empire? A remedy was at length + produced by the evil itself: the accumulation of rubbish and the earth, + that has been washed down from the hills, is supposed to have elevated the + plain of Rome, fourteen or fifteen feet, perhaps, above the ancient level; + <a href="#linkMnote-18" name="linkMnoteref-18" id="linkMnoteref-18">18</a> + and the modern city is less accessible to the attacks of the river. <a + href="#linkMnote-19" name="linkMnoteref-19" id="linkMnoteref-19">19</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-9" id="linkMnote-9"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ The age of the pyramids is + remote and unknown, since Diodorus Siculus (tom. i l. i. c. 44, p. 72) is + unable to decide whether they were constructed 1000, or 3400, years before + the clxxxth Olympiad. Sir John Marsham's contracted scale of the Egyptian + dynasties would fix them about 2000 years before Christ, (Canon. + Chronicus, p. 47.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-10" id="linkMnote-10"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ See the speech of + Glaucus in the Iliad, (Z. 146.) This natural but melancholy image is + peculiar to Homer.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-11" id="linkMnote-11"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ The learning and + criticism of M. des Vignoles (Histoire Critique de la République des + Lettres, tom. viii. p. 47—118, ix. p. 172—187) dates the fire + of Rome from A.D. 64, July 19, and the subsequent persecution of the + Christians from November 15 of the same year.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-12" id="linkMnote-12"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ Quippe in regiones + quatuordecim Roma dividitur, quarum quatuor integræ manebant, tres solo + tenus dejectæ: septem reliquis pauca testorum vestigia supererant, lacera + et semiusta. Among the old relics that were irreparably lost, Tacitus + enumerates the temple of the moon of Servius Tullius; the fane and altar + consecrated by Evander præsenti Herculi; the temple of Jupiter Stator, a + vow of Romulus; the palace of Numa; the temple of Vesta cum Penatibus + populi Romani. He then deplores the opes tot victoriis quæsitæ et Græcarum + artium decora.... multa quæ seniores meminerant, quæ reparari nequibant, + (Annal. xv. 40, 41.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-13" id="linkMnote-13"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ A. U. C. 507, repentina + subversio ipsius Romæ prævenit triumphum Romanorum.... diversæ ignium + aquarumque clades pene absumsere urbem Nam Tiberis insolitis auctus + imbribus et ultra opinionem, vel diuturnitate vel maguitudine redundans, + <i>omnia</i> Romæ ædificia in plano posita delevit. Diversæ qualitates + locorum ad unam convenere perniciem: quoniam et quæ segnior inundatio + tenuit madefacta dissolvit, et quæ cursus torrentis invenit impulsa + dejecit, (Orosius, Hist. l. iv. c. 11, p. 244, edit. Havercamp.) Yet we + may observe, that it is the plan and study of the Christian apologist to + magnify the calamities of the Pagan world.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-14" id="linkMnote-14"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ + </p> + <p> + Vidimus flavum Tiberim, retortis Littore Etrusco violenter undis, Ire + dejectum monumenta Regis Templaque Vestæ. (Horat. Carm. I. 2.) + </p> + <p> + If the palace of Numa and temple of Vesta were thrown down in Horace's + time, what was consumed of those buildings by Nero's fire could hardly + deserve the epithets of vetustissima or incorrupta.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-15" id="linkMnote-15"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ Ad coercendas + inundationes alveum Tiberis laxavit, ac repurgavit, completum olim + ruderibus, et ædificiorum prolapsionibus coarctatum, (Suetonius in + Augusto, c. 30.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-16" id="linkMnote-16"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ Tacitus (Annal. i. 79) + reports the petitions of the different towns of Italy to the senate + against the measure; and we may applaud the progress of reason. On a + similar occasion, local interests would undoubtedly be consulted: but an + English House of Commons would reject with contempt the arguments of + superstition, "that nature had assigned to the rivers their proper + course," &c.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-17" id="linkMnote-17"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Epoques de la + Nature of the eloquent and philosophic Buffon. His picture of Guyana, in + South America, is that of a new and savage land, in which the waters are + abandoned to themselves without being regulated by human industry, (p. + 212, 561, quarto edition.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-18" id="linkMnote-18"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ In his travels in Italy, + Mr. Addison (his works, vol. ii. p. 98, Baskerville's edition) has + observed this curious and unquestionable fact.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-19" id="linkMnote-19"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ Yet in modern times, the + Tyber has sometimes damaged the city, and in the years 1530, 1557, 1598, + the annals of Muratori record three mischievous and memorable inundations, + (tom. xiv. p. 268, 429, tom. xv. p. 99, &c.) * Note: The level of the + Tyber was at one time supposed to be considerably raised: recent + investigations seem to be conclusive against this supposition. See a + brief, but satisfactory statement of the question in Bunsen and Platner, + Roms Beschreibung. vol. i. p. 29.—M.] + </p> + <p> + II. The crowd of writers of every nation, who impute the destruction of + the Roman monuments to the Goths and the Christians, have neglected to + inquire how far they were animated by a hostile principle, and how far + they possessed the means and the leisure to satiate their enmity. In the + preceding volumes of this History, I have described the triumph of + barbarism and religion; and I can only resume, in a few words, their real + or imaginary connection with the ruin of ancient Rome. Our fancy may + create, or adopt, a pleasing romance, that the Goths and Vandals sallied + from Scandinavia, ardent to avenge the flight of Odin; <a + href="#linkMnote-20" name="linkMnoteref-20" id="linkMnoteref-20">20</a> to + break the chains, and to chastise the oppressors, of mankind; that they + wished to burn the records of classic literature, and to found their + national architecture on the broken members of the Tuscan and Corinthian + orders. But in simple truth, the northern conquerors were neither + sufficiently savage, nor sufficiently refined, to entertain such aspiring + ideas of destruction and revenge. The shepherds of Scythia and Germany had + been educated in the armies of the empire, whose discipline they acquired, + and whose weakness they invaded: with the familiar use of the Latin + tongue, they had learned to reverence the name and titles of Rome; and, + though incapable of emulating, they were more inclined to admire, than to + abolish, the arts and studies of a brighter period. In the transient + possession of a rich and unresisting capital, the soldiers of Alaric and + Genseric were stimulated by the passions of a victorious army; amidst the + wanton indulgence of lust or cruelty, portable wealth was the object of + their search; nor could they derive either pride or pleasure from the + unprofitable reflection, that they had battered to the ground the works of + the consuls and Cæsars. Their moments were indeed precious; the Goths + evacuated Rome on the sixth, <a href="#linkMnote-21" name="linkMnoteref-21" + id="linkMnoteref-21">21</a> the Vandals on the fifteenth, day: <a + href="#linkMnote-22" name="linkMnoteref-22" id="linkMnoteref-22">22</a> + and, though it be far more difficult to build than to destroy, their hasty + assault would have made a slight impression on the solid piles of + antiquity. We may remember, that both Alaric and Genseric affected to + spare the buildings of the city; that they subsisted in strength and + beauty under the auspicious government of Theodoric; <a + href="#linkMnote-23" name="linkMnoteref-23" id="linkMnoteref-23">23</a> + and that the momentary resentment of Totila <a href="#linkMnote-24" + name="linkMnoteref-24" id="linkMnoteref-24">24</a> was disarmed by his own + temper and the advice of his friends and enemies. From these innocent + Barbarians, the reproach may be transferred to the Catholics of Rome. The + statues, altars, and houses, of the dæmons, were an abomination in their + eyes; and in the absolute command of the city, they might labor with zeal + and perseverance to erase the idolatry of their ancestors. The demolition + of the temples in the East <a href="#linkMnote-25" name="linkMnoteref-25" + id="linkMnoteref-25">25</a> affords to <i>them</i> an example of conduct, + and to <i>us</i> an argument of belief; and it is probable that a portion + of guilt or merit may be imputed with justice to the Roman proselytes. Yet + their abhorrence was confined to the monuments of heathen superstition; + and the civil structures that were dedicated to the business or pleasure + of society might be preserved without injury or scandal. The change of + religion was accomplished, not by a popular tumult, but by the decrees of + the emperors, of the senate, and of time. Of the Christian hierarchy, the + bishops of Rome were commonly the most prudent and least fanatic; nor can + any positive charge be opposed to the meritorious act of saving or + converting the majestic structure of the Pantheon. <a href="#linkMnote-26" + name="linkMnoteref-26" id="linkMnoteref-26">26</a> <a href="#linkMnote-261" + name="linkMnoteref-261" id="linkMnoteref-261">261</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-20" id="linkMnote-20"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ I take this opportunity + of declaring, that in the course of twelve years, I have forgotten, or + renounced, the flight of Odin from Azoph to Sweden, which I never very + seriously believed, (vol. i. p. 283.) The Goths are apparently Germans: + but all beyond Cæsar and Tacitus is darkness or fable, in the antiquities + of Germany.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-21" id="linkMnote-21"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ History of the Decline, + &c., vol. iii. p. 291.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-22" id="linkMnote-22"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [———————————vol. + iii. p. 464.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-23" id="linkMnote-23"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [———————————vol. + iv. p. 23—25.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-24" id="linkMnote-24"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [———————————vol. + iv. p. 258.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-25" id="linkMnote-25"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 25 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-25">return</a>)<br /> [———————————vol. + iii. c. xxviii. p. 139—148.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-26" id="linkMnote-26"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 26 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-26">return</a>)<br /> [ Eodem tempore petiit a + Phocate principe templum, quod appellatur <i>Pantheon</i>, in quo fecit + ecclesiam Sanctæ Mariæ semper Virginis, et omnium martyrum; in quâ + ecclesiæ princeps multa bona obtulit, (Anastasius vel potius Liber + Pontificalis in Bonifacio IV., in Muratori, Script. Rerum Italicarum, tom. + iii. P. i. p. 135.) According to the anonymous writer in Montfaucon, the + Pantheon had been vowed by Agrippa to Cybele and Neptune, and was + dedicated by Boniface IV., on the calends of November, to the Virgin, quæ + est mater omnium sanctorum, (p. 297, 298.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-261" id="linkMnote-261"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 261 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-261">return</a>)<br /> [ The popes, under the + dominion of the emperor and of the exarchs, according to Feas's just + observation, did not possess the power of disposing of the buildings and + monuments of the city according to their own will. Bunsen and Platner, + vol. i. p. 241.—M.] + </p> + <p> + III. The value of any object that supplies the wants or pleasures of + mankind is compounded of its substance and its form, of the materials and + the manufacture. Its price must depend on the number of persons by whom it + may be acquired and used; on the extent of the market; and consequently on + the ease or difficulty of remote exportation, according to the nature of + the commodity, its local situation, and the temporary circumstances of the + world. The Barbarian conquerors of Rome usurped in a moment the toil and + treasure of successive ages; but, except the luxuries of immediate + consumption, they must view without desire all that could not be removed + from the city in the Gothic wagons or the fleet of the Vandals. <a + href="#linkMnote-27" name="linkMnoteref-27" id="linkMnoteref-27">27</a> + Gold and silver were the first objects of their avarice; as in every + country, and in the smallest compass, they represent the most ample + command of the industry and possessions of mankind. A vase or a statue of + those precious metals might tempt the vanity of some Barbarian chief; but + the grosser multitude, regardless of the form, was tenacious only of the + substance; and the melted ingots might be readily divided and stamped into + the current coin of the empire. The less active or less fortunate robbers + were reduced to the baser plunder of brass, lead, iron, and copper: + whatever had escaped the Goths and Vandals was pillaged by the Greek + tyrants; and the emperor Constans, in his rapacious visit, stripped the + bronze tiles from the roof of the Pantheon. <a href="#linkMnote-28" + name="linkMnoteref-28" id="linkMnoteref-28">28</a> The edifices of Rome + might be considered as a vast and various mine; the first labor of + extracting the materials was already performed; the metals were purified + and cast; the marbles were hewn and polished; and after foreign and + domestic rapine had been satiated, the remains of the city, could a + purchaser have been found, were still venal. The monuments of antiquity + had been left naked of their precious ornaments; but the Romans would + demolish with their own hands the arches and walls, if the hope of profit + could surpass the cost of the labor and exportation. If Charlemagne had + fixed in Italy the seat of the Western empire, his genius would have + aspired to restore, rather than to violate, the works of the Cæsars; but + policy confined the French monarch to the forests of Germany; his taste + could be gratified only by destruction; and the new palace of Aix la + Chapelle was decorated with the marbles of Ravenna <a href="#linkMnote-29" + name="linkMnoteref-29" id="linkMnoteref-29">29</a> and Rome. <a + href="#linkMnote-30" name="linkMnoteref-30" id="linkMnoteref-30">30</a> + Five hundred years after Charlemagne, a king of Sicily, Robert, the wisest + and most liberal sovereign of the age, was supplied with the same + materials by the easy navigation of the Tyber and the sea; and Petrarch + sighs an indignant complaint, that the ancient capital of the world should + adorn from her own bowels the slothful luxury of Naples. <a + href="#linkMnote-31" name="linkMnoteref-31" id="linkMnoteref-31">31</a> + But these examples of plunder or purchase were rare in the darker ages; + and the Romans, alone and unenvied, might have applied to their private or + public use the remaining structures of antiquity, if in their present form + and situation they had not been useless in a great measure to the city and + its inhabitants. The walls still described the old circumference, but the + city had descended from the seven hills into the Campus Martius; and some + of the noblest monuments which had braved the injuries of time were left + in a desert, far remote from the habitations of mankind. The palaces of + the senators were no longer adapted to the manners or fortunes of their + indigent successors: the use of baths <a href="#linkMnote-32" + name="linkMnoteref-32" id="linkMnoteref-32">32</a> and porticos was + forgotten: in the sixth century, the games of the theatre, amphitheatre, + and circus, had been interrupted: some temples were devoted to the + prevailing worship; but the Christian churches preferred the holy figure + of the cross; and fashion, or reason, had distributed after a peculiar + model the cells and offices of the cloister. Under the ecclesiastical + reign, the number of these pious foundations was enormously multiplied; + and the city was crowded with forty monasteries of men, twenty of women, + and sixty chapters and colleges of canons and priests, <a + href="#linkMnote-33" name="linkMnoteref-33" id="linkMnoteref-33">33</a> + who aggravated, instead of relieving, the depopulation of the tenth + century. But if the forms of ancient architecture were disregarded by a + people insensible of their use and beauty, the plentiful materials were + applied to every call of necessity or superstition; till the fairest + columns of the Ionic and Corinthian orders, the richest marbles of Paros + and Numidia, were degraded, perhaps to the support of a convent or a + stable. The daily havoc which is perpetrated by the Turks in the cities of + Greece and Asia may afford a melancholy example; and in the gradual + destruction of the monuments of Rome, Sixtus the Fifth may alone be + excused for employing the stones of the Septizonium in the glorious + edifice of St. Peter's. <a href="#linkMnote-34" name="linkMnoteref-34" + id="linkMnoteref-34">34</a> A fragment, a ruin, howsoever mangled or + profaned, may be viewed with pleasure and regret; but the greater part of + the marble was deprived of substance, as well as of place and proportion; + it was burnt to lime for the purpose of cement. <a href="#linkMnote-341" + name="linkMnoteref-341" id="linkMnoteref-341">341</a> Since the arrival of + Poggius, the temple of Concord, <a href="#linkMnote-35" + name="linkMnoteref-35" id="linkMnoteref-35">35</a> and many capital + structures, had vanished from his eyes; and an epigram of the same age + expresses a just and pious fear, that the continuance of this practice + would finally annihilate all the monuments of antiquity. <a + href="#linkMnote-36" name="linkMnoteref-36" id="linkMnoteref-36">36</a> + The smallness of their numbers was the sole check on the demands and + depredations of the Romans. The imagination of Petrarch might create the + presence of a mighty people; <a href="#linkMnote-37" name="linkMnoteref-37" + id="linkMnoteref-37">37</a> and I hesitate to believe, that, even in the + fourteenth century, they could be reduced to a contemptible list of + thirty-three thousand inhabitants. From that period to the reign of Leo + the Tenth, if they multiplied to the amount of eighty-five thousand, <a + href="#linkMnote-38" name="linkMnoteref-38" id="linkMnoteref-38">38</a> + the increase of citizens was in some degree pernicious to the ancient + city. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-27" id="linkMnote-27"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 27 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-27">return</a>)<br /> [ Flaminius Vacca (apud + Montfaucon, p. 155, 156. His memoir is likewise printed, p. 21, at the end + of the Roman Antica of Nardini) and several Romans, doctrinâ graves, were + persuaded that the Goths buried their treasures at Rome, and bequeathed + the secret marks filiis nepotibusque. He relates some anecdotes to prove, + that in his own time, these places were visited and rifled by the + Transalpine pilgrims, the heirs of the Gothic conquerors.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-28" id="linkMnote-28"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 28 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-28">return</a>)<br /> [ Omnia quæ erant in ære + ad ornatum civitatis deposuit, sed e ecclesiam B. Mariæ ad martyres quæ de + tegulis æreis cooperta discooperuit, (Anast. in Vitalian. p. 141.) The + base and sacrilegious Greek had not even the poor pretence of plundering a + heathen temple, the Pantheon was already a Catholic church.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-29" id="linkMnote-29"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 29 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-29">return</a>)<br /> [ For the spoils of + Ravenna (musiva atque marmora) see the original grant of Pope Adrian I. to + Charlemagne, (Codex Carolin. epist. lxvii. in Muratori, Script. Ital. tom. + iii. P. ii. p. 223.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-30" id="linkMnote-30"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 30 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-30">return</a>)<br /> [ I shall quote the + authentic testimony of the Saxon poet, (A.D. 887—899,) de Rebus + gestis Caroli magni, l. v. 437—440, in the Historians of France, + (tom. v. p. 180:) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Ad quæ marmoreas præstabat Roma columnas, + Quasdam præcipuas pulchra Ravenna dedit. + De tam longinquâ poterit regione vetustas + Illius ornatum, Francia, ferre tibi. +</pre> + <p class="foot"> + And I shall add from the Chronicle of Sigebert, (Historians of France, + tom. v. p. 378,) extruxit etiam Aquisgrani basilicam plurimæ + pulchritudinis, ad cujus structuram a Roma et Ravenna columnas et marmora + devehi fecit.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-31" id="linkMnote-31"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 31 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-31">return</a>)<br /> [ I cannot refuse to + transcribe a long passage of Petrarch (Opp. p. 536, 537) in Epistolâ + hortatoriâ ad Nicolaum Laurentium; it is so strong and full to the point: + Nec pudor aut pietas continuit quominus impii spoliata Dei templa, + occupatas arces, opes publicas, regiones urbis, atque honores magistratûum + inter se divisos; (<i>habeant?</i>) quam unâ in re, turbulenti ac + seditiosi homines et totius reliquæ vitæ consiliis et rationibus + discordes, inhumani fderis stupendà societate convenirent, in pontes et + mnia atque immeritos lapides desævirent. Denique post vi vel senio + collapsa palatia, quæ quondam ingentes tenuerunt viri, post diruptos arcus + triumphales, (unde majores horum forsitan corruerunt,) de ipsius + vetustatis ac propriæ impietatis fragminibus vilem quæstum turpi + mercimonio captare non puduit. Itaque nunc, heu dolor! heu scelus + indignum! de vestris marmoreis columnis, de liminibus templorum, (ad quæ + nuper ex orbe toto concursus devotissimus fiebat,) de imaginibus + sepulchrorum sub quibus patrum vestrorum venerabilis civis (<i>cinis?</i>) + erat, ut reliquas sileam, desidiosa Neapolis adornatur. Sic paullatim + ruinæ ipsæ deficiunt. Yet King Robert was the friend of Petrarch.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-32" id="linkMnote-32"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 32 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-32">return</a>)<br /> [ Yet Charlemagne washed + and swam at Aix la Chapelle with a hundred of his courtiers, (Eginhart, c. + 22, p. 108, 109,) and Muratori describes, as late as the year 814, the + public baths which were built at Spoleto in Italy, (Annali, tom. vi. p. + 416.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-33" id="linkMnote-33"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 33 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-33">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Annals of Italy, + A.D. 988. For this and the preceding fact, Muratori himself is indebted to + the Benedictine history of Père Mabillon.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-34" id="linkMnote-34"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 34 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-34">return</a>)<br /> [ Vita di Sisto Quinto, da + Gregorio Leti, tom. iii. p. 50.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-341" id="linkMnote-341"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 341 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-341">return</a>)<br /> [ From the quotations in + Bunsen's Dissertation, it may be suspected that this slow but continual + process of destruction was the most fatal. Ancient Rome eas considered a + quarry from which the church, the castle of the baron, or even the hovel + of the peasant, might be repaired.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-35" id="linkMnote-35"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 35 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-35">return</a>)<br /> [ Porticus ædis Concordiæ, + quam cum primum ad urbem accessi vidi fere integram opere marmoreo admodum + specioso: Romani postmodum ad calcem ædem totam et porticûs partem + disjectis columnis sunt demoliti, (p. 12.) The temple of Concord was + therefore <i>not</i> destroyed by a sedition in the xiiith century, as I + have read in a MS. treatise del' Governo civile di Rome, lent me formerly + at Rome, and ascribed (I believe falsely) to the celebrated Gravina. + Poggius likewise affirms that the sepulchre of Cæcilia Metella was burnt + for lime, (p. 19, 20.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-36" id="linkMnote-36"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 36 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-36">return</a>)<br /> [ Composed by Æneas + Sylvius, afterwards Pope Pius II., and published by Mabillon, from a MS. + of the queen of Sweden, (Musæum Italicum, tom. i. p. 97.) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Oblectat me, Roma, tuas spectare ruinas: + Ex cujus lapsû gloria prisca patet. + Sed tuus hic populus muris defossa vetustis + Calcis in obsequium marmora dura coquit. + Impia tercentum si sic gens egerit annos + Nullum hinc indicium nobilitatis erit.] +</pre> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-37" id="linkMnote-37"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 37 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-37">return</a>)<br /> [ Vagabamur pariter in + illâ urbe tam magnâ; quæ, cum propter spatium vacua videretur, populum + habet immensum, (Opp p. 605 Epist. Familiares, ii. 14.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-38" id="linkMnote-38"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 38 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-38">return</a>)<br /> [ These states of the + population of Rome at different periods are derived from an ingenious + treatise of the physician Lancisi, de Romani Cli Qualitatibus, (p. 122.)] + </p> + <p> + IV. I have reserved for the last, the most potent and forcible cause of + destruction, the domestic hostilities of the Romans themselves. Under the + dominion of the Greek and French emperors, the peace of the city was + disturbed by accidental, though frequent, seditions: it is from the + decline of the latter, from the beginning of the tenth century, that we + may date the licentiousness of private war, which violated with impunity + the laws of the Code and the Gospel, without respecting the majesty of the + absent sovereign, or the presence and person of the vicar of Christ. In a + dark period of five hundred years, Rome was perpetually afflicted by the + sanguinary quarrels of the nobles and the people, the Guelphs and + Ghibelines, the Colonna and Ursini; and if much has escaped the knowledge, + and much is unworthy of the notice, of history, I have exposed in the two + preceding chapters the causes and effects of the public disorders. At such + a time, when every quarrel was decided by the sword, and none could trust + their lives or properties to the impotence of law, the powerful citizens + were armed for safety, or offence, against the domestic enemies whom they + feared or hated. Except Venice alone, the same dangers and designs were + common to all the free republics of Italy; and the nobles usurped the + prerogative of fortifying their houses, and erecting strong towers, <a + href="#linkMnote-39" name="linkMnoteref-39" id="linkMnoteref-39">39</a> + that were capable of resisting a sudden attack. The cities were filled + with these hostile edifices; and the example of Lucca, which contained + three hundred towers; her law, which confined their height to the measure + of fourscore feet, may be extended with suitable latitude to the more + opulent and populous states. The first step of the senator Brancaleone in + the establishment of peace and justice, was to demolish (as we have + already seen) one hundred and forty of the towers of Rome; and, in the + last days of anarchy and discord, as late as the reign of Martin the + Fifth, forty-four still stood in one of the thirteen or fourteen regions + of the city. To this mischievous purpose the remains of antiquity were + most readily adapted: the temples and arches afforded a broad and solid + basis for the new structures of brick and stone; and we can name the + modern turrets that were raised on the triumphal monuments of Julius + Cæsar, Titus, and the Antonines. <a href="#linkMnote-40" + name="linkMnoteref-40" id="linkMnoteref-40">40</a> With some slight + alterations, a theatre, an amphitheatre, a mausoleum, was transformed into + a strong and spacious citadel. I need not repeat, that the mole of Adrian + has assumed the title and form of the castle of St. Angelo; <a + href="#linkMnote-41" name="linkMnoteref-41" id="linkMnoteref-41">41</a> + the Septizonium of Severus was capable of standing against a royal army; + <a href="#linkMnote-42" name="linkMnoteref-42" id="linkMnoteref-42">42</a> + the sepulchre of Metella has sunk under its outworks; <a + href="#linkMnote-43" name="linkMnoteref-43" id="linkMnoteref-43">43</a> <a + href="#linkMnote-431" name="linkMnoteref-431" id="linkMnoteref-431">431</a> + the theatres of Pompey and Marcellus were occupied by the Savelli and + Ursini families; <a href="#linkMnote-44" name="linkMnoteref-44" + id="linkMnoteref-44">44</a> and the rough fortress has been gradually + softened to the splendor and elegance of an Italian palace. Even the + churches were encompassed with arms and bulwarks, and the military engines + on the roof of St. Peter's were the terror of the Vatican and the scandal + of the Christian world. Whatever is fortified will be attacked; and + whatever is attacked may be destroyed. Could the Romans have wrested from + the popes the castle of St. Angelo, they had resolved by a public decree + to annihilate that monument of servitude. Every building of defence was + exposed to a siege; and in every siege the arts and engines of destruction + were laboriously employed. After the death of Nicholas the Fourth, Rome, + without a sovereign or a senate, was abandoned six months to the fury of + civil war. "The houses," says a cardinal and poet of the times, <a + href="#linkMnote-45" name="linkMnoteref-45" id="linkMnoteref-45">45</a> + "were crushed by the weight and velocity of enormous stones; <a + href="#linkMnote-46" name="linkMnoteref-46" id="linkMnoteref-46">46</a> + the walls were perforated by the strokes of the battering-ram; the towers + were involved in fire and smoke; and the assailants were stimulated by + rapine and revenge." The work was consummated by the tyranny of the laws; + and the factions of Italy alternately exercised a blind and thoughtless + vengeance on their adversaries, whose houses and castles they razed to the + ground. <a href="#linkMnote-47" name="linkMnoteref-47" id="linkMnoteref-47">47</a> + In comparing the <i>days</i> of foreign, with the <i>ages</i> of domestic, + hostility, we must pronounce, that the latter have been far more ruinous + to the city; and our opinion is confirmed by the evidence of Petrarch. + "Behold," says the laureate, "the relics of Rome, the image of her + pristine greatness! neither time nor the Barbarian can boast the merit of + this stupendous destruction: it was perpetrated by her own citizens, by + the most illustrious of her sons; and your ancestors (he writes to a noble + Annabaldi) have done with the battering-ram what the Punic hero could not + accomplish with the sword." <a href="#linkMnote-48" name="linkMnoteref-48" + id="linkMnoteref-48">48</a> The influence of the two last principles of + decay must in some degree be multiplied by each other; since the houses + and towers, which were subverted by civil war, required by a new and + perpetual supply from the monuments of antiquity. <a href="#linkMnote-481" + name="linkMnoteref-481" id="linkMnoteref-481">481</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-39" id="linkMnote-39"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 39 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-39">return</a>)<br /> [ All the facts that + relate to the towers at Rome, and in other free cities of Italy, may be + found in the laborious and entertaining compilation of Muratori, + Antiquitates Italiæ Medii Ævi, dissertat. xxvi., (tom. ii. p. 493—496, + of the Latin, tom.. p. 446, of the Italian work.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-40" id="linkMnote-40"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 40 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-40">return</a>)<br /> [ As for instance, templum + Jani nunc dicitur, turris Centii Frangipanis; et sane Jano impositæ turris + lateritiæ conspicua hodieque vestigia supersunt, (Montfaucon Diarium + Italicum, p. 186.) The anonymous writer (p. 285) enumerates, arcus Titi, + turris Cartularia; arcus Julii Cæsaris et Senatorum, turres de Bratis; + arcus Antonini, turris de Cosectis, &c.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-41" id="linkMnote-41"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 41 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-41">return</a>)<br /> [ Hadriani molem.... magna + ex parte Romanorum injuria.... disturbavit; quod certe funditus + evertissent, si eorum manibus pervia, absumptis grandibus saxis, reliqua + moles exstisset, (Poggius de Varietate Fortunæ, p. 12.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-42" id="linkMnote-42"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 42 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-42">return</a>)<br /> [ Against the emperor + Henry IV., (Muratori, Annali d' Italia, tom. ix. p. 147.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-43" id="linkMnote-43"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 43 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-43">return</a>)<br /> [ I must copy an important + passage of Montfaucon: Turris ingens rotunda.... Cæciliæ Metellæ.... + sepulchrum erat, cujus muri tam solidi, ut spatium perquam minimum intus + vacuum supersit; et <i>Torre di Bove</i> dicitur, a boum capitibus muro + inscriptis. Huic sequiori ævo, tempore intestinorum bellorum, ceu urbecula + adjuncta fuit, cujus mnia et turres etiamnum visuntur; ita ut sepulchrum + Metellæ quasi arx oppiduli fuerit. Ferventibus in urbe partibus, cum + Ursini atque Columnenses mutuis cladibus perniciem inferrent civitati, in + utriusve partis ditionem cederet magni momenti erat, (p. 142.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-431" id="linkMnote-431"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 431 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-431">return</a>)<br /> [ This is inaccurately + expressed. The sepulchre is still standing See Hobhouse, p. 204.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-44" id="linkMnote-44"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 44 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-44">return</a>)<br /> [ See the testimonies of + Donatus, Nardini, and Montfaucon. In the Savelli palace, the remains of + the theatre of Marcellus are still great and conspicuous.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-45" id="linkMnote-45"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 45 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-45">return</a>)<br /> [ James, cardinal of St. + George, ad velum aureum, in his metrical life of Pope Celestin V., + (Muratori, Script. Ital. tom. i. P. iii. p. 621, l. i. c. l. ver. 132, + &c.) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Hoc dixisse sat est, Romam caruisee Senatû + Mensibus exactis heu sex; belloque vocatum (<i>vocatos</i>) + In scelus, in socios fraternaque vulnera patres; + Tormentis jecisse viros immania saxa; + Perfodisse domus trabibus, fecisse ruinas + Ignibus; incensas turres, obscuraque fumo + Lumina vicino, quo sit spoliata supellex.] +</pre> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-46" id="linkMnote-46"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 46 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-46">return</a>)<br /> [ Muratori (Dissertazione + sopra le Antiquità Italiane, tom. i. p. 427—431) finds that stone + bullets of two or three hundred pounds' weight were not uncommon; and they + are sometimes computed at xii. or xviii <i>cantari</i> of Genoa, each <i>cantaro</i> + weighing 150 pounds.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-47" id="linkMnote-47"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 47 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-47">return</a>)<br /> [ The vith law of the + Visconti prohibits this common and mischievous practice; and strictly + enjoins, that the houses of banished citizens should be preserved pro + communi utilitate, (Gualvancus de la Flamma in Muratori, Script. Rerum + Italicarum, tom. xii. p. 1041.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-48" id="linkMnote-48"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 48 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-48">return</a>)<br /> [ Petrarch thus addresses + his friend, who, with shame and tears had shown him the mnia, laceræ + specimen miserable Romæ, and declared his own intention of restoring them, + (Carmina Latina, l. ii. epist. Paulo Annibalensi, xii. p. 97, 98.) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Nec te parva manet servatis fama ruinis + Quanta quod integræ fuit olim gloria Romæ + Reliquiæ testantur adhuc; quas longior ætas + Frangere non valuit; non vis aut ira cruenti Hostis, + ab egregiis franguntur civibus, heu! heu' + ————Quod <i>ille</i> nequivit (<i>Hannibal</i>.) + Perficit hic aries.] +</pre> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-481" id="linkMnote-481"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 481 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-481">return</a>)<br /> [ Bunsen has shown that + the hostile attacks of the emperor Henry the Fourth, but more particularly + that of Robert Guiscard, who burned down whole districts, inflicted the + worst damage on the ancient city Vol. i. p. 247.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkM2HCH0002" id="linkM2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + Chapter LXXI: Prospect Of The Ruins Of Rome In The Fifteenth Century.—Part + II + </h2> + <p> + These general observations may be separately applied to the amphitheatre + of Titus, which has obtained the name of the Coliseum, <a + href="#linkMnote-49" name="linkMnoteref-49" id="linkMnoteref-49">49</a> + either from its magnitude, or from Nero's colossal statue; an edifice, had + it been left to time and nature, which might perhaps have claimed an + eternal duration. The curious antiquaries, who have computed the numbers + and seats, are disposed to believe, that above the upper row of stone + steps the amphitheatre was encircled and elevated with several stages of + wooden galleries, which were repeatedly consumed by fire, and restored by + the emperors. Whatever was precious, or portable, or profane, the statues + of gods and heroes, and the costly ornaments of sculpture which were cast + in brass, or overspread with leaves of silver and gold, became the first + prey of conquest or fanaticism, of the avarice of the Barbarians or the + Christians. In the massy stones of the Coliseum, many holes are discerned; + and the two most probable conjectures represent the various accidents of + its decay. These stones were connected by solid links of brass or iron, + nor had the eye of rapine overlooked the value of the baser metals; <a + href="#linkMnote-50" name="linkMnoteref-50" id="linkMnoteref-50">50</a> + the vacant space was converted into a fair or market; the artisans of the + Coliseum are mentioned in an ancient survey; and the chasms were + perforated or enlarged to receive the poles that supported the shops or + tents of the mechanic trades. <a href="#linkMnote-51" + name="linkMnoteref-51" id="linkMnoteref-51">51</a> Reduced to its naked + majesty, the Flavian amphitheatre was contemplated with awe and admiration + by the pilgrims of the North; and their rude enthusiasm broke forth in a + sublime proverbial expression, which is recorded in the eighth century, in + the fragments of the venerable Bede: "As long as the Coliseum stands, Rome + shall stand; when the Coliseum falls, Rome will fall; when Rome falls, the + world will fall." <a href="#linkMnote-52" name="linkMnoteref-52" + id="linkMnoteref-52">52</a> In the modern system of war, a situation + commanded by three hills would not be chosen for a fortress; but the + strength of the walls and arches could resist the engines of assault; a + numerous garrison might be lodged in the enclosure; and while one faction + occupied the Vatican and the Capitol, the other was intrenched in the + Lateran and the Coliseum. <a href="#linkMnote-53" name="linkMnoteref-53" + id="linkMnoteref-53">53</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-49" id="linkMnote-49"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 49 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-49">return</a>)<br /> [ The fourth part of the + Verona Illustrata of the marquis Maffei professedly treats of + amphitheatres, particularly those of Rome and Verona, of their dimensions, + wooden galleries, &c. It is from magnitude that he derives the name of + <i>Colosseum</i>, or <i>Coliseum</i>; since the same appellation was + applied to the amphitheatre of Capua, without the aid of a colossal + statue; since that of Nero was erected in the court (<i>in atrio</i>) of + his palace, and not in the Coliseum, (P. iv. p. 15—19, l. i. c. 4.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-50" id="linkMnote-50"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 50 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-50">return</a>)<br /> [ Joseph Maria Suarés, a + learned bishop, and the author of a history of Præneste, has composed a + separate dissertation on the seven or eight probable causes of these + holes, which has been since reprinted in the Roman Thesaurus of Sallengre. + Montfaucon (Diarium, p. 233) pronounces the rapine of the Barbarians to be + the unam germanamque causam foraminum. * Note: The improbability of this + theory is shown by Bunsen, vol. i. p. 239.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-51" id="linkMnote-51"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 51 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-51">return</a>)<br /> [ Donatus, Roma Vetus et + Nova, p. 285. Note: Gibbon has followed Donatus, who supposes that a silk + manufactory was established in the xiith century in the Coliseum. The + Bandonarii, or Bandererii, were the officers who carried the standards of + their <i>school</i> before the pope. Hobhouse, p. 269.—M.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-52" id="linkMnote-52"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 52 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-52">return</a>)<br /> [ Quamdiu stabit Colyseus, + stabit et Roma; quando cadet Coly seus, cadet Roma; quando cadet Roma, + cadet et mundus, (Beda in Excerptis seu Collectaneis apud Ducange Glossar. + Med. et Infimæ Latinitatis, tom. ii. p. 407, edit. Basil.) This saying + must be ascribed to the Anglo-Saxon pilgrims who visited Rome before the + year 735 the æra of Bede's death; for I do not believe that our venerable + monk ever passed the sea.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-53" id="linkMnote-53"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 53 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-53">return</a>)<br /> [ I cannot recover, in + Muratori's original Lives of the Popes, (Script Rerum Italicarum, tom. + iii. P. i.,) the passage that attests this hostile partition, which must + be applied to the end of the xiith or the beginning of the xiith century. + * Note: "The division is mentioned in Vit. Innocent. Pap. II. ex Cardinale + Aragonio, (Script. Rer. Ital. vol. iii. P. i. p. 435,) and Gibbon might + have found frequent other records of it at other dates." Hobhouse's + Illustrations of Childe Harold. p. 130.—M.] + </p> + <p> + The abolition at Rome of the ancient games must be understood with some + latitude; and the carnival sports, of the Testacean mount and the Circus + Agonalis, <a href="#linkMnote-54" name="linkMnoteref-54" + id="linkMnoteref-54">54</a> were regulated by the law <a + href="#linkMnote-55" name="linkMnoteref-55" id="linkMnoteref-55">55</a> or + custom of the city. The senator presided with dignity and pomp to adjudge + and distribute the prizes, the gold ring, or the <i>pallium</i>, <a + href="#linkMnote-56" name="linkMnoteref-56" id="linkMnoteref-56">56</a> as + it was styled, of cloth or silk. A tribute on the Jews supplied the annual + expense; <a href="#linkMnote-57" name="linkMnoteref-57" + id="linkMnoteref-57">57</a> and the races, on foot, on horseback, or in + chariots, were ennobled by a tilt and tournament of seventy-two of the + Roman youth. In the year one thousand three hundred and thirty-two, a + bull-feast, after the fashion of the Moors and Spaniards, was celebrated + in the Coliseum itself; and the living manners are painted in a diary of + the times. <a href="#linkMnote-58" name="linkMnoteref-58" + id="linkMnoteref-58">58</a> A convenient order of benches was restored; + and a general proclamation, as far as Rimini and Ravenna, invited the + nobles to exercise their skill and courage in this perilous adventure. The + Roman ladies were marshalled in three squadrons, and seated in three + balconies, which, on this day, the third of September, were lined with + scarlet cloth. The fair Jacova di Rovere led the matrons from beyond the + Tyber, a pure and native race, who still represent the features and + character of antiquity. The remainder of the city was divided as usual + between the Colonna and Ursini: the two factions were proud of the number + and beauty of their female bands: the charms of Savella Ursini are + mentioned with praise; and the Colonna regretted the absence of the + youngest of their house, who had sprained her ankle in the garden of + Nero's tower. The lots of the champions were drawn by an old and + respectable citizen; and they descended into the arena, or pit, to + encounter the wild bulls, on foot as it should seem, with a single spear. + Amidst the crowd, our annalist has selected the names, colors, and + devices, of twenty of the most conspicuous knights. Several of the names + are the most illustrious of Rome and the ecclesiastical state: Malatesta, + Polenta, della Valle, Cafarello, Savelli, Capoccio, Conti, Annibaldi, + Altieri, Corsi: the colors were adapted to their taste and situation; the + devices are expressive of hope or despair, and breathe the spirit of + gallantry and arms. "I am alone, like the youngest of the Horatii," the + confidence of an intrepid stranger: "I live disconsolate," a weeping + widower: "I burn under the ashes," a discreet lover: "I adore Lavinia, or + Lucretia," the ambiguous declaration of a modern passion: "My faith is as + pure," the motto of a white livery: "Who is stronger than myself?" of a + lion's hide: "If am drowned in blood, what a pleasant death!" the wish of + ferocious courage. The pride or prudence of the Ursini restrained them + from the field, which was occupied by three of their hereditary rivals, + whose inscriptions deMnoted the lofty greatness of the Colonna name: + "Though sad, I am strong:" "Strong as I am great:" "If I fall," addressing + himself to the spectators, "you fall with me;"—intimating (says the + contemporary writer) that while the other families were the subjects of + the Vatican, they alone were the supporters of the Capitol. The combats of + the amphitheatre were dangerous and bloody. Every champion successively + encountered a wild bull; and the victory may be ascribed to the + quadrupeds, since no more than eleven were left on the field, with the + loss of nine wounded and eighteen killed on the side of their adversaries. + Some of the noblest families might mourn, but the pomp of the funerals, in + the churches of St. John Lateran and St. Maria Maggiore, afforded a second + holiday to the people. Doubtless it was not in such conflicts that the + blood of the Romans should have been shed; yet, in blaming their rashness, + we are compelled to applaud their gallantry; and the noble volunteers, who + display their magnificence, and risk their lives, under the balconies of + the fair, excite a more generous sympathy than the thousands of captives + and malefactors who were reluctantly dragged to the scene of slaughter. <a + href="#linkMnote-59" name="linkMnoteref-59" id="linkMnoteref-59">59</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-54" id="linkMnote-54"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 54 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-54">return</a>)<br /> [ Although the structure + of the circus Agonalis be destroyed, it still retains its form and name, + (Agona, Nagona, Navona;) and the interior space affords a sufficient level + for the purpose of racing. But the Monte Testaceo, that strange pile of + broken pottery, seems only adapted for the annual practice of hurling from + top to bottom some wagon-loads of live hogs for the diversion of the + populace, (Statuta Urbis Romæ, p. 186.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-55" id="linkMnote-55"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 55 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-55">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Statuta Urbis + Romæ, l. iii. c. 87, 88, 89, p. 185, 186. I have already given an idea of + this municipal code. The races of Nagona and Monte Testaceo are likewise + mentioned in the Diary of Peter Antonius from 1404 to 1417, (Muratori, + Script. Rerum Italicarum, tom. xxiv. p. 1124.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-56" id="linkMnote-56"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 56 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-56">return</a>)<br /> [ The <i>Pallium</i>, + which Menage so foolishly derives from <i>Palmarius</i>, is an easy + extension of the idea and the words, from the robe or cloak, to the + materials, and from thence to their application as a prize, (Muratori, + dissert. xxxiii.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-57" id="linkMnote-57"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 57 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-57">return</a>)<br /> [ For these expenses, the + Jews of Rome paid each year 1130 florins, of which the odd thirty + represented the pieces of silver for which Judas had betrayed his Master + to their ancestors. There was a foot-race of Jewish as well as of + Christian youths, (Statuta Urbis, ibidem.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-58" id="linkMnote-58"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 58 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-58">return</a>)<br /> [ This extraordinary + bull-feast in the Coliseum is described, from tradition rather than + memory, by Ludovico Buonconte Monaldesco, on the most ancient fragments of + Roman annals, (Muratori, Script Rerum Italicarum, tom. xii. p. 535, 536;) + and however fanciful they may seem, they are deeply marked with the colors + of truth and nature.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-59" id="linkMnote-59"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 59 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-59">return</a>)<br /> [ Muratori has given a + separate dissertation (the xxixth) to the games of the Italians in the + Middle Ages.] + </p> + <p> + This use of the amphitheatre was a rare, perhaps a singular, festival: the + demand for the materials was a daily and continual want which the citizens + could gratify without restraint or remorse. In the fourteenth century, a + scandalous act of concord secured to both factions the privilege of + extracting stones from the free and common quarry of the Coliseum; <a + href="#linkMnote-60" name="linkMnoteref-60" id="linkMnoteref-60">60</a> + and Poggius laments, that the greater part of these stones had been burnt + to lime by the folly of the Romans. <a href="#linkMnote-61" + name="linkMnoteref-61" id="linkMnoteref-61">61</a> To check this abuse, + and to prevent the nocturnal crimes that might be perpetrated in the vast + and gloomy recess, Eugenius the Fourth surrounded it with a wall; and, by + a charter long extant, granted both the ground and edifice to the monks of + an adjacent convent. <a href="#linkMnote-62" name="linkMnoteref-62" + id="linkMnoteref-62">62</a> After his death, the wall was overthrown in a + tumult of the people; and had they themselves respected the noblest + monument of their fathers, they might have justified the resolve that it + should never be degraded to private property. The inside was damaged: but + in the middle of the sixteenth century, an æra of taste and learning, the + exterior circumference of one thousand six hundred and twelve feet was + still entire and inviolate; a triple elevation of fourscore arches, which + rose to the height of one hundred and eight feet. Of the present ruin, the + nephews of Paul the Third are the guilty agents; and every traveller who + views the Farnese palace may curse the sacrilege and luxury of these + upstart princes. <a href="#linkMnote-63" name="linkMnoteref-63" + id="linkMnoteref-63">63</a> A similar reproach is applied to the + Barberini; and the repetition of injury might be dreaded from every reign, + till the Coliseum was placed under the safeguard of religion by the most + liberal of the pontiffs, Benedict the Fourteenth, who consecrated a spot + which persecution and fable had stained with the blood of so many + Christian martyrs. <a href="#linkMnote-64" name="linkMnoteref-64" + id="linkMnoteref-64">64</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-60" id="linkMnote-60"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 60 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-60">return</a>)<br /> [ In a concise but + instructive memoir, the abbé Barthelemy (Mémoires de l'Académie des + Inscriptions, tom. xxviii. p. 585) has mentioned this agreement of the + factions of the xivth century de Tiburtino faciendo in the Coliseum, from + an original act in the archives of Rome.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-61" id="linkMnote-61"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 61 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-61">return</a>)<br /> [ Coliseum.... ob + stultitiam Romanorum <i>majori ex parte</i> ad calcem deletum, says the + indignant Poggius, (p. 17:) but his expression too strong for the present + age, must be very tenderly applied to the xvth century.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-62" id="linkMnote-62"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 62 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-62">return</a>)<br /> [ Of the Olivetan monks. + Montfaucon (p. 142) affirms this fact from the memorials of Flaminius + Vacca, (No. 72.) They still hoped on some future occasion, to revive and + vindicate their grant.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-63" id="linkMnote-63"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 63 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-63">return</a>)<br /> [ After measuring the + priscus amphitheatri gyrus, Montfaucon (p. 142) only adds that it was + entire under Paul III.; tacendo clamat. Muratori (Annali d'Italia, tom. + xiv. p. 371) more freely reports the guilt of the Farnese pope, and the + indignation of the Roman people. Against the nephews of Urban VIII. I have + no other evidence than the vulgar saying, "Quod non fecerunt Barbari, + fecere Barberini," which was perhaps suggested by the resemblance of the + words.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-64" id="linkMnote-64"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 64 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-64">return</a>)<br /> [ As an antiquarian and a + priest, Montfaucon thus deprecates the ruin of the Coliseum: Quòd si non + suopte merito atque pulchritudine dignum fuisset quod improbas arceret + manus, indigna res utique in locum tot martyrum cruore sacrum tantopere + sævitum esse.] + </p> + <p> + When Petrarch first gratified his eyes with a view of those monuments, + whose scattered fragments so far surpass the most eloquent descriptions, + he was astonished at the supine indifference <a href="#linkMnote-65" + name="linkMnoteref-65" id="linkMnoteref-65">65</a> of the Romans + themselves; <a href="#linkMnote-66" name="linkMnoteref-66" + id="linkMnoteref-66">66</a> he was humbled rather than elated by the + discovery, that, except his friend Rienzi, and one of the Colonna, a + stranger of the Rhône was more conversant with these antiquities than the + nobles and natives of the metropolis. <a href="#linkMnote-67" + name="linkMnoteref-67" id="linkMnoteref-67">67</a> The ignorance and + credulity of the Romans are elaborately displayed in the old survey of the + city which was composed about the beginning of the thirteenth century; + and, without dwelling on the manifold errors of name and place, the legend + of the Capitol <a href="#linkMnote-68" name="linkMnoteref-68" + id="linkMnoteref-68">68</a> may provoke a smile of contempt and + indignation. "The Capitol," says the anonymous writer, "is so named as + being the head of the world; where the consuls and senators formerly + resided for the government of the city and the globe. The strong and lofty + walls were covered with glass and gold, and crowned with a roof of the + richest and most curious carving. Below the citadel stood a palace, of + gold for the greatest part, decorated with precious stones, and whose + value might be esteemed at one third of the world itself. The statues of + all the provinces were arranged in order, each with a small bell suspended + from its neck; and such was the contrivance of art magic, <a + href="#linkMnote-69" name="linkMnoteref-69" id="linkMnoteref-69">69</a> + that if the province rebelled against Rome, the statue turned round to + that quarter of the heavens, the bell rang, the prophet of the Capitol + repeated the prodigy, and the senate was admonished of the impending + danger." A second example, of less importance, though of equal absurdity, + may be drawn from the two marble horses, led by two naked youths, who have + since been transported from the baths of Constantine to the Quirinal hill. + The groundless application of the names of Phidias and Praxiteles may + perhaps be excused; but these Grecian sculptors should not have been + removed above four hundred years from the age of Pericles to that of + Tiberius; they should not have been transferred into two philosophers or + magicians, whose nakedness was the symbol of truth or knowledge, who + revealed to the emperor his most secret actions; and, after refusing all + pecuniary recompense, solicited the honor of leaving this eternal monument + of themselves. <a href="#linkMnote-70" name="linkMnoteref-70" + id="linkMnoteref-70">70</a> Thus awake to the power of magic, the Romans + were insensible to the beauties of art: no more than five statues were + visible to the eyes of Poggius; and of the multitudes which chance or + design had buried under the ruins, the resurrection was fortunately + delayed till a safer and more enlightened age. <a href="#linkMnote-71" + name="linkMnoteref-71" id="linkMnoteref-71">71</a> The Nile which now + adorns the Vatican, had been explored by some laborers in digging a + vineyard near the temple, or convent, of the Minerva; but the impatient + proprietor, who was tormented by some visits of curiosity, restored the + unprofitable marble to its former grave. <a href="#linkMnote-72" + name="linkMnoteref-72" id="linkMnoteref-72">72</a> The discovery of a + statue of Pompey, ten feet in length, was the occasion of a lawsuit. It + had been found under a partition wall: the equitable judge had pronounced, + that the head should be separated from the body to satisfy the claims of + the contiguous owners; and the sentence would have been executed, if the + intercession of a cardinal, and the liberality of a pope, had not rescued + the Roman hero from the hands of his barbarous countrymen. <a + href="#linkMnote-73" name="linkMnoteref-73" id="linkMnoteref-73">73</a> + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-65" id="linkMnote-65"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 65 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-65">return</a>)<br /> [ Yet the statutes of Rome + (l. iii. c. 81, p. 182) impose a fine of 500 <i>aurei</i> on whosoever + shall demolish any ancient edifice, ne ruinis civitas deformetur, et ut + antiqua ædificia decorem urbis perpetuo representent.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-66" id="linkMnote-66"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 66 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-66">return</a>)<br /> [ In his first visit to + Rome (A.D. 1337. See Mémoires sur Pétrarque, tom. i. p. 322, &c.) + Petrarch is struck mute miraculo rerum tantarum, et stuporis mole + obrutus.... Præsentia vero, mirum dictû nihil imminuit: vere major fuit + Roma majoresque sunt reliquiæ quam rebar. Jam non orbem ab hâc urbe + domitum, sed tam sero domitum, miror, (Opp. p. 605, Familiares, ii. 14, + Joanni Columnæ.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-67" id="linkMnote-67"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 67 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-67">return</a>)<br /> [ He excepts and praises + the <i>rare</i> knowledge of John Colonna. Qui enim hodie magis ignari + rerum Romanarum, quam Romani cives! Invitus dico, nusquam minus Roma + cognoscitur quam Romæ.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-68" id="linkMnote-68"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 68 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-68">return</a>)<br /> [ After the description of + the Capitol, he adds, statuæ erant quot sunt mundi provinciæ; et habebat + quælibet tintinnabulum ad collum. Et erant ita per magicam artem + dispositæ, ut quando aliqua regio Romano Imperio rebellis erat, statim + imago illius provinciæ vertebat se contra illam; unde tintinnabulum + resonabat quod pendebat ad collum; tuncque vates Capitolii qui erant + custodes senatui, &c. He mentions an example of the Saxons and Suevi, + who, after they had been subdued by Agrippa, again rebelled: tintinnabulum + sonuit; sacerdos qui erat in speculo in hebdomada senatoribus nuntiavit: + Agrippa marched back and reduced the—Persians, (Anonym. in + Montfaucon, p. 297, 298.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-69" id="linkMnote-69"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 69 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-69">return</a>)<br /> [ The same writer affirms, + that Virgil captus a Romanis invisibiliter exiit, ivitque Neapolim. A + Roman magician, in the xith century, is introduced by William of + Malmsbury, (de Gestis Regum Anglorum, l. ii. p. 86;) and in the time of + Flaminius Vacca (No. 81, 103) it was the vulgar belief that the strangers + (the <i>Goths</i>) invoked the dæmons for the discovery of hidden + treasures.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-70" id="linkMnote-70"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 70 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-70">return</a>)<br /> [ Anonym. p. 289. + Montfaucon (p. 191) justly observes, that if Alexander be represented, + these statues cannot be the work of Phidias (Olympiad lxxxiii.) or + Praxiteles, (Olympiad civ.,) who lived before that conqueror (Plin. Hist. + Natur. xxxiv. 19.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-71" id="linkMnote-71"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 71 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-71">return</a>)<br /> [ William of Malmsbury (l. + ii. p. 86, 87) relates a marvellous discovery (A.D. 1046) of Pallas the + son of Evander, who had been slain by Turnus; the perpetual light in his + sepulchre, a Latin epitaph, the corpse, yet entire, of a young giant, the + enormous wound in his breast, (pectus perforat ingens,) &c. If this + fable rests on the slightest foundation, we may pity the bodies, as well + as the statues, that were exposed to the air in a barbarous age.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-72" id="linkMnote-72"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 72 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-72">return</a>)<br /> [ Prope porticum Minervæ, + statua est recubantis, cujus caput integrâ effigie tantæ magnitudinis, ut + signa omnia excedat. Quidam ad plantandas arbores scrobes faciens detexit. + Ad hoc visendum cum plures in dies magis concurrerent, strepitum + adeuentium fastidiumque pertæsus, horti patronus congestâ humo texit, + (Poggius de Varietate Fortunæ, p. 12.)] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-73" id="linkMnote-73"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 73 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-73">return</a>)<br /> [ See the Memorials of + Flaminius Vacca, No. 57, p. 11, 12, at the end of the Roma Antica of + Nardini, (1704, in 4to.)] + </p> + <p> + But the clouds of barbarism were gradually dispelled; and the peaceful + authority of Martin the Fifth and his successors restored the ornaments of + the city as well as the order of the ecclesiastical state. The + improvements of Rome, since the fifteenth century, have not been the + spontaneous produce of freedom and industry. The first and most natural + root of a great city is the labor and populousness of the adjacent + country, which supplies the materials of subsistence, of manufactures, and + of foreign trade. But the greater part of the Campagna of Rome is reduced + to a dreary and desolate wilderness: the overgrown estates of the princes + and the clergy are cultivated by the lazy hands of indigent and hopeless + vassals; and the scanty harvests are confined or exported for the benefit + of a monopoly. A second and more artificial cause of the growth of a + metropolis is the residence of a monarch, the expense of a luxurious + court, and the tributes of dependent provinces. Those provinces and + tributes had been lost in the fall of the empire; and if some streams of + the silver of Peru and the gold of Brazil have been attracted by the + Vatican, the revenues of the cardinals, the fees of office, the oblations + of pilgrims and clients, and the remnant of ecclesiastical taxes, afford a + poor and precarious supply, which maintains, however, the idleness of the + court and city. The population of Rome, far below the measure of the great + capitals of Europe, does not exceed one hundred and seventy thousand + inhabitants; <a href="#linkMnote-74" name="linkMnoteref-74" + id="linkMnoteref-74">74</a> and within the spacious enclosure of the + walls, the largest portion of the seven hills is overspread with vineyards + and ruins. The beauty and splendor of the modern city may be ascribed to + the abuses of the government, to the influence of superstition. Each reign + (the exceptions are rare) has been marked by the rapid elevation of a new + family, enriched by the childish pontiff at the expense of the church and + country. The palaces of these fortunate nephews are the most costly + monuments of elegance and servitude: the perfect arts of architecture, + sculpture, and painting, have been prostituted in their service; and their + galleries and gardens are decorated with the most precious works of + antiquity, which taste or vanity has prompted them to collect. The + ecclesiastical revenues were more decently employed by the popes + themselves in the pomp of the Catholic worship; but it is superfluous to + enumerate their pious foundations of altars, chapels, and churches, since + these lesser stars are eclipsed by the sun of the Vatican, by the dome of + St. Peter, the most glorious structure that ever has been applied to the + use of religion. The fame of Julius the Second, Leo the Tenth, and Sixtus + the Fifth, is accompanied by the superior merit of Bramante and Fontana, + of Raphael and Michael Angelo; and the same munificence which had been + displayed in palaces and temples was directed with equal zeal to revive + and emulate the labors of antiquity. Prostrate obelisks were raised from + the ground, and erected in the most conspicuous places; of the eleven + aqueducts of the Cæsars and consuls, three were restored; the artificial + rivers were conducted over a long series of old, or of new arches, to + discharge into marble basins a flood of salubrious and refreshing waters: + and the spectator, impatient to ascend the steps of St. Peter's, is + detained by a column of Egyptian granite, which rises between two lofty + and perpetual fountains, to the height of one hundred and twenty feet. The + map, the description, the monuments of ancient Rome, have been elucidated + by the diligence of the antiquarian and the student: <a + href="#linkMnote-75" name="linkMnoteref-75" id="linkMnoteref-75">75</a> + and the footsteps of heroes, the relics, not of superstition, but of + empire, are devoutly visited by a new race of pilgrims from the remote, + and once savage countries of the North. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-74" id="linkMnote-74"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 74 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-74">return</a>)<br /> [ In the year 1709, the + inhabitants of Rome (without including eight or ten thousand Jews,) + amounted to 138,568 souls, (Labat Voyages en Espagne et en Italie, tom. + iii. p. 217, 218.) In 1740, they had increased to 146,080; and in 1765, I + left them, without the Jews 161,899. I am ignorant whether they have since + continued in a progressive state.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkMnote-75" id="linkMnote-75"> + <!-- Note --></a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 75 (<a href="#linkMnoteref-75">return</a>)<br /> [ The Père Montfaucon + distributes his own observations into twenty days; he should have styled + them weeks, or months, of his visits to the different parts of the city, + (Diarium Italicum, c. 8—20, p. 104—301.) That learned + Benedictine reviews the topographers of ancient Rome; the first efforts of + Blondus, Fulvius, Martianus, and Faunus, the superior labors of Pyrrhus + Ligorius, had his learning been equal to his labors; the writings of + Onuphrius Panvinius, qui omnes obscuravit, and the recent but imperfect + books of Donatus and Nardini. Yet Montfaucon still sighs for a more + complete plan and description of the old city, which must be attained by + the three following methods: 1. The measurement of the space and intervals + of the ruins. 2. The study of inscriptions, and the places where they were + found. 3. The investigation of all the acts, charters, diaries of the + middle ages, which name any spot or building of Rome. The laborious work, + such as Montfaucon desired, must be promoted by princely or public + munificence: but the great modern plan of Nolli (A.D. 1748) would furnish + a solid and accurate basis for the ancient topography of Rome.] + </p> + <p> + Of these pilgrims, and of every reader, the attention will be excited by a + History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire; the greatest, + perhaps, and most awful scene in the history of mankind. The various + causes and progressive effects are connected with many of the events most + interesting in human annals: the artful policy of the Cæsars, who long + maintained the name and image of a free republic; the disorders of + military despotism; the rise, establishment, and sects of Christianity; + the foundation of Constantinople; the division of the monarchy; the + invasion and settlements of the Barbarians of Germany and Scythia; the + institutions of the civil law; the character and religion of Mahomet; the + temporal sovereignty of the popes; the restoration and decay of the + Western empire of Charlemagne; the crusades of the Latins in the East: the + conquests of the Saracens and Turks; the ruin of the Greek empire; the + state and revolutions of Rome in the middle age. The historian may applaud + the importance and variety of his subject; but while he is conscious of + his own imperfections, he must often accuse the deficiency of his + materials. It was among the ruins of the Capitol that I first conceived + the idea of a work which has amused and exercised near twenty years of my + life, and which, however inadequate to my own wishes, I finally deliver + to the curiosity and candor of the public. + </p> + <p> + Lausanne, June 27 1787 + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The History of The Decline and Fall of +the Roman Empire, by Edward Gibbon + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE *** + +***** This file should be named 895-h.htm or 895-h.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/8/9/895/ + +Produced by David Reed and Dale R. Fredrickson + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +http://gutenberg.org/license). + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at +http://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at http://pglaf.org + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit http://pglaf.org + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. +To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + http://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. + + +</pre> + </body> +</html> |