The First Governess of the Netherlands, Margaret of Austria Part 3

[16] A. R. Villa, _La Reina Dona Juana la Loca_.

[Ill.u.s.tration: GHENT, SHEWING THE OLD BELFRY, AND CHURCH OF ST.

JOHN, WHERE CHARLES V WAS BAPTISED]

The old town of Ghent held high festival in honour of the birth of the heir of Austria and Burgundy. The dragon on the belfry ejected Greek fire from mouth and tail; torches and paper lanterns swung gaily from the tower of Saint Nicholas to the belfry, and the object of all this rejoicing was the infant who was one day to become the Emperor Charles V. by a long train of events which opened the way to his inheritance of more extensive dominions than any European sovereign since Charlemagne had possessed, each of his ancestors having acquired kingdoms or provinces towards which their prospect of succession was extremely remote. But his early childhood was clouded, for he hardly knew his parents, who left the Netherlands for Spain in November 1501, barely nine months after his birth. When his mother returned in 1504 her mind was already troubled by the gloom which settled on her in later years. After Queen Isabella's death his parents again left for Spain to take possession of their kingdom of Castile (April 1506), and Charles did not see his mother until 1517. But if he never knew a mother's care, he had an admirable subst.i.tute in the affection and guidance of his aunt.

Margaret spent two years with her father after she left Spain, during which time she studied the management of German affairs, and tried to forget her sorrow in improving her mind and cultivating her many gifts. Her high birth, beauty, and accomplishments brought her many suitors amongst the princes of Europe; we hear of her marriage being discussed with the Kings of Poland and Scotland, and even with the Prince of Wales, who was not yet united to his long-betrothed bride Katharine. Finally her choice fell upon the young Duke of Savoy, who had previously married Louisa Jolenta, daughter of Amadeus VIII., Duke of Savoy, but who had no children. The young Duke Philibert II., surnamed the Handsome, was born in the castle of Pont d'Ain on the 10th of April 1480; he was therefore about the same age as Margaret.

His youth had been spent at the Court of France, and at fourteen he had accompanied the expedition of Charles VIII. against the kingdom of Naples. The following year, which was that of his accession to the dukedom, he had taken part in the war waged by the Emperor Maximilian against the Florentines. Tall, strong, courageous, extremely good-looking, an accomplished rider, devoted to horses, hunting, jousting and feats of arms, he was indeed a gallant young prince, well fitted to win the heart of a beautiful and accomplished princess.

Politically this alliance was popular in Savoy, where it was feared that a too close connection with France might impair the independence of the duchy.

On the 26th of September 1501 the marriage contract was signed at Brussels. The Archduke Philip settled 300,000 golden crowns on his sister as dowry. She also enjoyed a revenue of 20,000 as Dowager-Princess of Spain. It was agreed that if the Duke Philibert should predecease his wife she should receive a dowry of 12,000 golden crowns, raised on the county of Romont and the provinces of Vaud and Faucigny.

Margaret left Brussels towards the end of October to join her future husband at Geneva. She travelled slowly, for the roads were bad and the days short. Margaret of York accompanied her for half a league and then took leave; her brother Philip going with her a short way, he left her a company of Flemish n.o.bles to escort her as far as Geneva at his expense, Duke Philibert having sent two hundred and fifty knights to meet his bride and act as her bodyguard.

The inhabitants of the towns she pa.s.sed through turned out to give her a hearty welcome and to wish her good luck. They offered her gifts of wine and venison, wild boars, partridges, rabbits, and fatted calves.

The Bishop of Troyes gave her the keys of his cellar whilst she stayed in the episcopal town. At Dole the inhabitants made her a present of 'six puncheons of wine, six sheep, six calves, six dozen capons, six wild geese, and twelve horses laden with oats.'

The duke's natural brother Rene, who was known as the b.a.s.t.a.r.d of Savoy, married her by proxy on Sunday, November 28th. He presented the bride with a heart of diamonds surmounted by a very fine pearl, and a girdle set with twenty-six diamonds, ten large carbuncles and pearls (marguerites) without number. When the evening came, Margaret, dressed in cloth of gold, lined with crimson satin, and wearing splendid jewels, was laid on a state-bed, whilst Rene in complete armour went through the ceremony of placing himself beside her, 'all those who had been at the betrothal being present.' After a few moments he rose from the bed, begging madame's pardon for having interrupted her sleep, and asking for a kiss in payment. The kiss was graciously given, and Rene, throwing himself on his knees, swore to be always her faithful servant. Margaret made him rise, wished him a good-night, and presented him with a valuable diamond set in a gold ring.[17]

[17] M. Le Glay.

From Dole Margaret travelled to Romain-Motier, a small village about two miles from Geneva, and buried in a lonely valley. The ruined cloisters of the old abbey of black monks may still be seen where Philibert met Margaret one winter's morning, and where the marriage was celebrated by Louis de Gorrevod, Bishop of Maurienne, on the 4th of December 1501.

A brilliant reception awaited the young couple at Geneva. Magnificent fetes, jousts, and tourneys were given in their honour, which 'cost the town a great deal in games, dances, masquerades, and other amus.e.m.e.nts.' Together they made a triumphal progress through the princ.i.p.al towns to the duchy of Savoy during the spring and summer. At Chambery they received a royal welcome. At Bourg the inhabitants greeted the bridal pair with enthusiasm, although the humble burghers had been much perturbed as to how they should do honour to an emperor's daughter.

They had just bought fifty thousand bricks wherewith to erect fortifications, and this expense had emptied the munic.i.p.al coffers.

After much consultation they decided to borrow seven hundred florins from the priests of Our Lady of Bourg. These ecclesiastics lent the sum required on receiving authority to reimburse themselves from the revenues of the town. A deputation was sent to meet the duke and d.u.c.h.ess and to offer them and the Governor of Bresse four dozen Clon cheeses, four puncheons of foreign wine, and twelve pots of preserves.

The following detailed account of their reception is to be found in the archives of the town of Bourg:--

'At last the long-looked-for day came, and the duke and d.u.c.h.ess arrived at Bourg on the 5th of August 1502. From early dawn the bells of the monasteries and churches were ringing, guns firing, and a stir of general excitement was in the air. The picturesque wooden houses were hung with coloured tapestries, decorated with five hundred escutcheons bearing the arms of Savoy and Burgundy. Eight platforms had been constructed in different parts of the town on which were to be enacted masques and allegories. At the sound of the trumpet the crowd collected in front of the town-hall, from whence issued the munic.i.p.al body, preceded by the syndics in red robes, one of them bearing the town keys on a silver salver. The procession marched with trumpets blowing to the market-place, when soon after a warlike fanfare and the neighing of horses announced the arrival of the ducal cortege, headed by Philibert and Margaret. The sight of the young couple evoked shouts and cheers. Margaret, wearing the ducal crown, was mounted on a palfrey, covered with a rich drapery, embroidered with the arms of Burgundy, and with nodding white plumes on its head.

Through a veil of silver tissue her sweet face appeared framed in long tresses of fair hair. A close-fitting dress of crimson velvet st.i.tched with gold, bordered with the embossed arms of Austria and Savoy, set off her graceful figure. With one hand she held the reins of her horse, with the other she saluted the crowd, whilst at her right on a fiery charger rode the handsome Philibert, delighted with the enthusiasm which burst forth at the progress of his lovely wife.

'The syndics, kneeling on one knee, presented the duke and d.u.c.h.ess with the keys of the town. John Palluat, head of the munic.i.p.ality, made a lengthy speech according to the fashion of the time, full of whimsical expressions, puns and witticisms, comparing Princess Margaret's qualities with those of the flower that bore her name.

'Having entered the town the ducal procession alighted, and two gentlemen--Geoffroy Guillot and Thomas Bergier--advanced towards the princess: the former had been chosen by the council to explain the mysteries, moralities, and allegories; the latter to hold a small canopy over the princess's head. At the market gate on a large platform a huge elephant was seen carrying a tower. This tower, emblem of the town, had four turrets, in each of which was a young girl typifying one of the four attributes of the capital of Bresse. These attributes were goodness, obedience, reason, and justice. After listening to verses sung in her praise by the four attributes, the princess, still preceded by Geoffroy Guillot, arrived at the market-place, where on another platform was represented the invocation of Saint Margaret, virgin and martyr. The saint with a halo, treading an enormous dragon under foot, was smiling at Margaret. She held her right hand over her as a sign of her protection in this world, and with her left pointed to the sky and the eternal throne that G.o.d had prepared for her. A group of angels sang a hymn about heaven envying earth the possession of Margaret; whilst the priests of Notre-Dame and the preaching friars enacted the legend of Saint George and the Archangel Michael on the platforms before their church.

'Further on, before the Maison de Challes, the exploits of G.o.ds and heroes of mythology were shown. Two persons, one wrapped in a lion's skin and carrying on his shoulder an enormous club of cardboard, the other in a helmet and draped in a red tunic, were supposed to represent the departure of Hercules and Jason to conquer the Golden Fleece. At the other end of the theatre Medea, dressed in a silk robe, gave vent to the fury she felt at her adventurous husband's indifference.

'Before the fountain of the town the crowd was so dense that the guard and Geoffroy Guillot found it difficult to force a pa.s.sage for the d.u.c.h.ess. There the monks of Scillon had arranged a curious fountain in the shape of a gigantic maiden from whose b.r.e.a.s.t.s of tinted metal two jets of wine flowed into a large basin; her body held a puncheon of wine which was cleverly replaced when exhausted. Finally, in front of the entrance to the ducal palace, Margaret witnessed the conquest of the Golden Fleece. Before carrying off this precious spoil Hercules and Jason had to fight a mult.i.tude of monsters, dragons and buffaloes, which were disposed of with their club and sword. The crowd having loudly cheered this curious exhibition, the duke and d.u.c.h.ess entered the castle situated in the highest part of the city.

'The syndics in the name of the town then presented the gift they had prepared for the d.u.c.h.ess, a gold medal weighing one hundred and fifty ducats. This medal, struck at Bourg, showed on the obverse the effigy of the duke and d.u.c.h.ess on a field strewn with fleurs-de-lys and love-knots, with this inscription:--

PHILIBERTUS DUX SABAUDIAE, VIIIUS.

MARGARITA MAXI., AUG. FI. D. SAB.

On the reverse was a shield with the arms of Savoy and Austria impaled, surmounted by a large love-knot and surrounded with this inscription:--

GLORIA IN ALTISSIMIS DEO, ET IN TERRA PAX HOMINIBUS.

BURGUS.

Thus ended the town of Bourg's splendid reception of their young duke and d.u.c.h.ess.'[18]

[18] J. Baux, _L'eglise de Brou_.

[Ill.u.s.tration: MEDAL STRUCK AT BOURG TO COMMEMORATE MARGARET OF AUSTRIA'S MARRIAGE WITH PHILIBERT, DUKE OF SAVOY]

Philibert and Margaret continued their tour of the duchy, and returned to Bourg in April 1503, when they took up their residence at the castle of Pont d'Ain, where the happiest years of Margaret's short married life were pa.s.sed.

From this favourite castle of the Dukes of Savoy on the river Ain, there is a splendid view of the undulating country, distant hills and forests, which in the days of Philibert were well stocked with game.

It would be hard to find a more beautiful spot, and it is no wonder that Margaret loved it and spent most of her time there.

When Philibert succeeded to the dukedom after his father's death, his first act had been to give an appanage to his natural brother Rene. He bestowed upon him the county of Villars, the castle of Apremont, and the Seignory of Gourdans. This brother, who was known as the b.a.s.t.a.r.d of Savoy, was of an ambitious and grasping nature. Knowing that Philibert hated business and preferred spending his time in hunting and warlike sports, Rene worked on his indolence until he practically had the management of the duchy in his own hands. He persuaded Philibert to grant him an act of legitimacy and also to give him the t.i.tle of Lieutenant-General of the States of Savoy. When Louis XII.

wished to pa.s.s through the duchy to reach Milan he communicated with Rene. The French monarch made him many promises, which were mentioned in the treaty concluded at Chateau-Renard with the Cardinal d'Amboise.

Duke Philibert, in virtue of this treaty, allowed the pa.s.sage of the French troops, received Louis XII. at Turin, displayed an extraordinary magnificence, and even accompanied the king to Milan with two hundred men-at-arms. In return for his civility Louis granted him an annual pension of 20,000 golden crowns from the revenues of this duchy.

Rene's influence over his half-brother was put to a hard test when Margaret became Philibert's wife. The young couple truly loved each other, but the princess could not brook this divided authority. She did all in her power to get rid of Rene, whom she heartily disliked.

The struggle was keen but decisive. Margaret made use of her father's authority, who as the Duke of Savoy's suzerain nullified the deed of Rene's legitimisation. She also had recourse to religious intervention to accuse him of extortion. At her instigation Friar Malet, the Court preacher, drew a picture of the people's misery and sufferings in a sermon. Addressing Philibert, he exhorted him to 'drive out the thieves who were in his household, who,' he said, 'were leeches sucking the blood of his unhappy subjects.' Rene was not long in perceiving that his credit at the Court of Savoy was gone. He came to his brother and asked permission to retire to his property. 'I wish,'

Philibert answered, 'that you would not only retire from my Court, but also from my State, and that within two days on pain of death.' Rene took refuge at the Court of France, but even there Margaret's dislike followed him, and all his goods were confiscated after a mock trial.

Philibert had only changed his Prime Minister. After Rene's departure Margaret took up the reins of government and ruled Savoy and Bresse unhindered. She obtained many privileges from her father, amongst others the temporal jurisdiction over all the bishoprics of Savoy, Piedmont, Bugey, and the provinces of Geneva and Vaud. This concession extended Savoy's right of sovereignty over all lands east of the river Saone, which is still called locally 'the side of the Empire.'

In April 1503 the Archduke Philip paid his sister a visit at Bourg on his return from Spain, where he had been to take possession of the crown of Castile, which through the death of Queen Isabella had descended to his wife Joanna. A grand tournament was held on the _Place des Lices_ in honour of his visit. Philip was then escorted by his sister and her husband to the castle of Pont d'Ain, where fresh festivities were prepared. The n.o.bility of Bresse and Bugey flocked there to welcome the royal guests, and there is even a tradition that the 'Holy Shroud,' usually kept at Turin, and which had long been in the possession of the House of Savoy, was there exposed for the archduke's veneration.

During the next few years the peace of Europe was unbroken, and Philibert was unable to satisfy his warlike inclinations. His exuberant spirits found an outlet in hunting, jousts, and tournaments. He loved splendid armour, gorgeous apparel, and brilliant fetes. A contemporary chronicler has left an account of the entertainments given by the Court of Savoy in 1504 on the occasion of the marriage of Laurent de Gorrevod (who later became Governor of Bresse and Count of Pont-de-Vaux) with the daughter of Hugues de la Pallu, Count of Varax, Marshal of Savoy. All the n.o.bility of Piedmont and Savoy were a.s.sembled at the castle of Carignan on the 18th of February, Shrove Tuesday, where a tournament took place in the presence of Philibert, 'Madam Margaret of Austria, Madame Blanche, Dowager of Savoy, and many other young and beautiful ladies, as much to pa.s.s the time as to please the ladies.'

A long and wearisome description of the tournament is given, in which Philibert and his brother Charles carried off several prizes. Such were the duke's favourite pastimes, whether at Turin, Carignan, or at Bourg, where the lists were opened under the castle walls.

Philibert had inherited his pa.s.sion for hunting from a long line of ancestors who were all devoted to this sport. The castle of Pont d'Ain, standing high on a hill overlooking Bresse and Bugey, with the river Ain flowing at its feet well stocked with fish, and its plains and vast forests abounding with game, was an ideal home for a sportsman like Philibert. Here he and Margaret enjoyed the pleasures of a country life. Accompanied by their n.o.bles and friends the duke and d.u.c.h.ess often started at dawn of day on their hunting excursions, returning with the last rays of the evening sun. We are told by Jean le Maire that one day Margaret had an accident which might have proved very serious. When she and her husband were hunting in the fields near the town of Quier in Piedmont, the powerful horse on which she was mounted became quite unmanageable, and kicking and plunging, threw her violently to the ground. She fell under its feet, the iron-shod hoofs trampling on her dress, disarranging her hair, and breaking a thick golden chain which hung from her neck. All those who witnessed the accident were paralysed with terror, believing the d.u.c.h.ess could not escape alive, and recalling a similar accident in which her mother, Mary of Burgundy, had lost her life. But Margaret had a miraculous escape, and got up without any harm beyond a severe shaking.

One morning, early in September 1504, Philibert went out hunting, leaving Margaret at Pont d'Ain, and though the weather was extremely hot, followed a wild boar for several hours. All his followers were left behind, and his horses having succ.u.mbed to the heat and hard riding, he descended a narrow valley about midday on foot, and at last arrived breathless and bathed in perspiration at Saint Vulbas'

fountain. Delighted with the freshness of the spot, he ordered his meal to be served in a shady grove; but before long he was seized with a sudden chill, and pressing his hand to his side in great pain, mounted a horse which was brought to him, and with difficulty rode back to Pont d'Ain, his n.o.bles and huntsmen sadly following. On arriving at the castle the duke threw himself heavily on a bed, and Margaret was immediately summoned. She tried by all means in her power to relieve him, sending in great haste for the doctors. When they came she gave them her precious pearls to grind to powder, and watched them make an elixir with these jewels which she hoped would save the duke's life. She made many vows, and sent offerings to distant shrines, invoking the help of heaven by her prayers. But Philibert was seized with pleurisy; his vigorous const.i.tution resisted the violence of the attack for some days. The physicians bled him, but all their doctoring was in vain, and soon they had to confess that they could do nothing more. 'He himself feeling his end approaching got up, and wished to go and say an eternal farewell to his very dear companion, embracing her closely. After having asked for the last sacraments, and by many acts of faith and devotion shown his love for the holy Christian faith, Duke Philibert expired in Margaret's arms on the 10th of September 1504, at nine o'clock in the morning, in the twenty-fourth year of his age, in the same room in the castle of Pont d'Ain where he had first seen the light.' Margaret's grief was heart-rending: we are told that her sobs and cries echoed through the castle. The whole duchy of Savoy mourned with her for the gallant young prince, so suddenly cut off in the flower of his age.

[Ill.u.s.tration: TOMB OF PHILIBERT LE BEAU, DUKE OF SAVOY, IN THE CHURCH OF BROU]

The duke's body was embalmed, and attired in ducal robes, with the rich insignia of his rank, laid on a state-bed in a s.p.a.cious chamber, where a crowd of his subjects came to gaze their last on their young lord. The body was then placed in a leaden coffin on which the deceased's t.i.tles were engraved, and his funeral carried out with much pomp. The magistrates of Bourg had a hundred torches made bearing the arms of the town; they were carried by burghers who went to escort the body from the castle of Pont d'Ain to the church of Notre-Dame, though Margaret wished her husband to be laid in the priory church of Brou, near his mother, Margaret of Bourbon's tomb.

In 1480 Philibert's father, whilst hunting near the same spot, where later his son contracted his fatal illness, had fallen from his horse and broken his arm. He also was carried to Pont d'Ain, and his life was in danger. His wife, Margaret of Bourbon, then made a vow that if her husband's life was spared she would found a monastery of the order of Saint Benedict at Brou. The duke recovered, but the d.u.c.h.ess died in 1483 before she fulfilled the vow, the accomplishment of which she bequeathed to her son Philibert, whose early death also prevented him from carrying out his mother's wishes. Margaret now took upon herself the duty of founding the monastery, and also of erecting for them both, and, above all, for him whom she loved, 'a great tomb which should be their nuptial couch,' where she herself would be laid to rest when her time should come.

Stricken with grief, a childless widow, deprived for the second time of the husband she loved, at the age of twenty-four she felt as though all joy in life had ended, and 'immediately after her husband's death she cut off her beautiful golden hair, and had the same done to her own ladies.'[19]

[19] _Couronne Margaritique._

Margaret pa.s.sed some years of her widowhood at the castle of Pont d'Ain, where several traces of her sojourn remain. She made some additions to the building; the princ.i.p.al staircase still bears her name. Here she lived in seclusion, mourning her lot, and describing her loneliness and sorrow in prose and in verse. In spite of the imperfections of a free versification Margaret's poems show a certain harmony, smoothness, and charm in the informal stanzas, of which the following is a good specimen:--

I

'O devots cueurs, amans d'amour fervente, Considerez si j'ay este dolente, Que c'est raison! je suis la seule mere Qui ay perdu son seul fils et son pere, Et son amy par amour excellente!

Ce n'est pas jeu d'estre si fortunee[20]