Character Sketches of Romance Volume Iii Part 156

=Sicilian Vespers= (_The_), the ma.s.sacre of the French in Sicily, which began at Palermo, March 30, 1282, at the hour of vespers, on Easter Monday. This wholesale slaughter was provoked by the brutal conduct of Charles d'Anjou (the governor) and his soldiers towards the islanders.

A similar ma.s.sacre of the Danes was made in England, on St. Bryce's Day (November 13), 1002.

Another similar slaughter took place at Bruges, March 24, 1302.

? The Bartholomew Ma.s.sacre (Aug. 24, 1572) was a religious not a political movement.

=Sicilien= (_Le_) or L'AMOUR PEINTRE, a comedy by Moliere (1667). The Sicilian is Don Pedre, who has a Greek slave named Is'idore. This slave is loved by Adraste (2 _syl._), a French gentleman, and the plot of the comedy, turns on the way that the Frenchman allures the Greek slave away from her master. Hearing that his friend Damon is going to make a portrait of Isidore, he gets him to write to Don Pedre a letter of introduction, requesting that the bearer may be allowed to take the likeness. By this ruse, Adraste reveals his love to Isidore, and persuades her to elope. The next step is this: Zade (2 _syl._), a young slave, pretends to have been ill-treated by Adraste, and runs to Don Pedre to crave protection. The don bids her go in, while he intercedes with Adraste on her behalf. The Frenchman seems to relent, and Pedre calls for Zade to come forth, but Isidore comes instead, wearing Zade's veil. Don Pedre says to Adraste, "There, take her home, and use her well!" "I will," says Adraste, and leads off the Greek slave.

=Siddartha=, born at Gaya, in India, and known in Indian history as Buddha (_i.e._ "The Wise").

=Sidney=, the tutor and friend of Charles Egerton McSycophant. He loves Constantia, but conceals his pa.s.sion for fear of paining Egerton, her accepted lover.--C. Macklin, _The Man of the World_ (1764).

_Sidney_ (_Sir Philip_). Sir Philip Sidney, though suffering extreme thirst from the agony of wounds, received in the battle of Zutphen, gave his own draught of water to a wounded private, lying at his side, saying, "Poor fellow, thy necessity is greater than mine."

A similar instance is recorded of Alexander "the Great," in the desert of Gedrosia.

David, fighting against the Philistines, became so parched with thirst, that he cried out, "Oh, that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!" And the three mighty men broke through the host of the Philistines, and brought him water; nevertheless, he would not drink it, but poured it out unto the Lord.--2 _Sam._ xxiii. 15-17.

=Sidney's Sister, Pembroke's Mother.= Mary Herbert (born Sidney), countess of Pembroke, who died 1621.

Underneath this sable hea.r.s.e Lies the subject of all verse-- Sidney's sister, Pembroke's mother.

Death, ere thou hast slain another Fair, and good, and learned as she, Time shall throw his dart at thee.

Ben Jonson (1574-1637).

=Sid'rophel=, William Lily, the astrologer.

Quoth Ralph, "Not far from hence doth dwell A cunning man, hight Sidrophel, That deals in destiny's dark counsels, And sage opinions of the moon sells; To whom all people, far and near, On deep importances repair."

S. Butler, _Hudibras_, ii. 3 (1664).

=Siebel=, Margheri'ta's rejected lover, in the opera of _Faust e Margherita_, by Gounod (1859).

=Siege.= _Mon siege est fait_, my opinion is fixed, and I cannot change it. This proverb rose thus: The abbe de Vertot wrote the history of a certain siege, and applied to a friend for some geographical particulars. These particulars did not arrive till the matter had pa.s.sed the press; so the abbe remarked with a shrug, "Bah! mon siege est fait."

=Siege Perilous= (_The_). The Round Table contained sieges for 150 knights, but three of them were "reserved." Of these, two were posts of honor, but the third was reserved for him who was destined to achieve the quest of the Holy Graal. This seat was called "perilous," because if any one sat therein, except he for whom it was reserved, it would be his death. Every seat of the table bore the name of its rightful occupant, in letters of gold, and the name on the "Siege Perilous" was Sir Galahad (son of Sir Launcelot and Elaine).

Said Merlin, "There shall no man sit in the two void places but they that shall be of most worship. But in the _Siege Perilous_ there shall no man sit but one, and if any other be so hardy as to do it, he shall be destroyed."--Pt. i. 48.

Then the old man made Sir Galahad unarm; and he put on him a coat of red sandel, with a mantel upon his shoulder furred with fine ermines ... and he brought him unto the Siege Perilous, when he sat beside Sir Launcelot. And the good old man lifted up the cloth, and found there these words written: THE SIEGE OF SIR GALAHAD.--Sir T.

Malory, _History of Prince Arthur_, iii. 32 (1470).

=Siege of Calais=, a novel by Mde. de Tencin (1681-1749). George Colman has a drama with the same t.i.tle.

=Siege of Damascus.= Damascus was besieged by the Arabs while Eu'menes was governor. The general of the Syrians was Pho'cyas, and of the Arabs, Caled. Phocyas asked Eumenes's permission to marry his daughter, Eudo'cia, but was sternly refused. After gaining several victories he fell into the hands of the Arabs, and then joined them in their siege in order to revenge himself on Eumenes. Eudocia fell into his power, but she refused to marry a traitor. Caled requested Phocyas to point out to him the governor's tent; on being refused, they fought, and Caled fell.

Abudah, being now in chief command, made an honorable peace with the Syrians, Phocyas died, and Eudocia retired to a convent.--J. Hughes, _Siege of Damascus_ (1720).

=Siege of Rhodes=, by Sir W. Davenant (1656).

=Sieg'fried= [_Seeg.freed_], hero of pt. i. of the _Nibelungen Lied_, the old German epic. Siegfried was a young warrior of peerless strength and beauty, invulnerable except in one spot between his shoulders. He vanquished the Nibelungs, and carried away their immense h.o.a.rds of gold and precious stones. He wooed and won Kriemhild, the sister of Gunther, king of Burgundy, but was treacherously killed by Hagan while stooping for a draught of water after a hunting expedition.

Siegfried had a cape, or cloak, which rendered him invisible, the gift of the dwarf, Alberich; and his sword, called Balmung, was forged by Wieland, blacksmith of the Teutonic G.o.ds.

This epic consists of a number of different lays by the old minnesingers, pieced together into a connected story as early as 1210.

It is of Scandinavian origin, and is in the _Younger Edda_, amongst the "Volsunga Sagas" (compiled by Snorro, in the thirteenth century).

_Siegfried's Birthplace._ He was born in Phinecastle, then called Xanton.

_Siegfried's Father and Mother._ Siegfried was the youngest son of Siegmund and Sieglind, king and queen of the Netherlands.

_Siegfried called h.o.r.n.y._ He was called h.o.r.n.y because, when he slew the dragon, he bathed in its blood, and became covered with a h.o.r.n.y hide which was invulnerable. A linden leaf happened to fall on his back between his shoulder-blades, and, as the blood did not touch this spot, it remained vulnerable.--The minnesingers, _The Nibelungen Lied_ (1210).

=Sieg'fried von Lindenberg=, the hero of a comic German romance by Muller (1779). Still popular and very amusing.

=Sieglind= [_Seeg.lind_], the mother of Siegfried, and wife of Siegmund, king of the Netherlands.--The minnesingers, _The Nibelungen Lied_ (1210).

=Siegmund= [_Seeg.mund_], king of the Netherlands. His wife was Sieglind, and his son, Siegfried [_Seeg.freed_].--The minnesingers, _The Nibelungen Lied_ (1210).

=Sige'ro=, "the Good," slain by Argantes. Argantes hurled his spear at G.o.dfrey, but it struck Sigero, who "rejoiced to suffer in his sovereign's place."--Ta.s.so, _Jerusalem Delivered_, xi. (1575).

=Sightly= (_Captain_), a dashing young officer, who runs away with Priscilla Tomboy, but subsequently obtains her guardian's consent to marry her.--_The Romp_ (altered from Bickerstaff's _Love in the City_).

=Sigismonda=, daughter of Tancred, king of Salerno. She fell in love with Guiscardo, her father's squire, revealed to him her love, and married him in a cavern attached to the palace. Tancred discovered them in each other's embrace, and gave secret orders to waylay the bridegroom and strangle him. He then went to Sigismonda, and reproved her for her degrading choice, which she boldly justified. Next day, she received a human heart in a gold casket, knew instinctively that it was Guiscardo's, and poisoned herself. Her father being sent for, she survived just long enough to request that she might be buried in the same grave as her young husband, and Tancred:

Too late repenting of his cruel deed, One common sepulchre for both decreed; Intombed the wretched pair in royal state, And on their monument inscribed their fate.

Dryden, _Sigismonda and Guiscardo_ (from Boccaccio).