May 6. 1854.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



417 



passages, in juxtaposition, from Seguin's pretended 

 work and from the original MS., to show how the 

 latter had been altered and corrupted in the 

 printed copy. M. Seguin was quite illiterate, 

 and has committed the most egregious blunders 

 in his chef d'ceuvre de plagiat, as his Histoire du 

 Pays a"Auge is termed by Querard. Many other 

 authors, besides Mr. Wiffen and M. Forineville, 

 wrote to Seguin for his authorities on various 

 subjects, but he never pointed out a single one. 

 Full details are given of his literary thefts by 

 M. Querard and his coadjutors. When the ori- 

 ginal work of M. Deshayes appears, in its genuine 

 state, as promised by M. Formeville, the world 

 will then learn what was really stated respecting 

 the descent of the Du Rozels from Bertrand de 

 Briquebec; although the amiable and accom- 

 plished Mr. Wiffen is no longer living to avail 

 himself of the information. Seguin died in 1847. 



John Macrat. 

 Oxford. 



FERDINAND CHARLES III., DUKE OF PARMA. 



Englishmen might, perhaps, feel even more horror 

 than they will do at the assassination, on Mar. 26, 

 of the Duke of Parma, if they were reminded 

 that he was the representative and lineal de- 

 scendant of Charles I., and as such possessed a 

 claim, by hereditary descent, on our Crown, supe- 

 rior to that of our gracious Queen, who is only 

 lineally descended from James I. 



I subjoin his pedigree : 



Charles !.■ 

 I 



Henrietta Maria=Philip Due d'Orleans. 



Anna Maria=Victor Amadeus II., Duke of Savoy and King of 

 I Sardinia. 



I 

 Charles Emanuel III., King of Sardinia, 1730= 



Victor Amadeus III., King of Sardinian 

 I 



Victor Emanuel, King of Sardinia, 1802= 

 ^_ I 



Maria Theresa= Charles II., Duke of Parma. 



Ferdinand Charles III., Duke of Parma, born January 14, 1823, 

 married, November 10, IMS, Louisa Maria Theresa of Bourbon, 

 daughter of the late Due de Berry, and was assassinated 

 March 26, 1854. 



It is rather a singular circumstance, that the 

 Duchess of Parma should have been the wife of 

 the hereditary heir to the throne of England, and 

 the sister of the hereditary heir to the throne of 

 France, — her husband, the Duke of Parma, hav- 

 ing been the representative of the House of Stuart, 



— and her brother, the Count de Chambord, being 

 the representative of the House of Bourbon. 



E. S. S. W. 



ORIGINAL ENGLISH ROYAL LETTERS TO THE GRAND 

 MASTERS OF MALTA. 



(Continued from Vol. ix., p. 267.) 



Through the great kindness of my old friend at 

 this island, Frederick Sedley, Esq., and the con- 

 tinued and constant assistance of Dr. Vella, I am 

 now enabled to forward correct translations of the 

 seven remaining letters bearing the autograph of 

 Charles II. Mindful of the space which will be 

 required for their insertion in " N". & Q.," I shall 

 confine myself to a few preliminary remarks. 



The first letter in the following list is the earliest 

 in date, as it is of the greatest interest. In it we 

 have, for the first time, found a curious statement 

 recorded by an English monarch, making known 

 that he not only built his galleys for the protection 

 of trade in this sea in different ports of the Medi- 

 terranean, and purchased the slaves to man them of 

 the Order of Malta, but also complaining to the 

 Grand Master for permitting the collector of cus- 

 toms to charge an export toll of " five pieces of 

 gold per head," which he considered an unjust tax 

 on this hind of commerce, and the more especially 

 so, because it was not demanded from his neigh- 

 bours and allies, the Kings of France and Spain. 

 That the Knights of St. John made their prisoners 

 slaves, disposing of some to the wealthy residents or 

 natives of the island, and employing others in the 

 erection of their dwellings, palaces, and fortifica- 

 tions, is well known. 



Historians have stated that when Dragut landed 

 at Malta, in July, 1551, with Sinam, his admiral, 

 who was in joint command, they went to the sum- 

 mit of Mount Sceberras to reconnoitre before an 

 attack should be made on the convent. When 

 employed on this service, Sinam, who was opposed 

 to any hostile movement, pointing to the castle, 

 thus remarked, " Surely no eagle could have 

 chosen a more craggy and difficult place to make 

 his nest in. Dost thou not see that men must 

 have wings to get up to it, and that all the artil- 

 lery and troops of the universe would not be able 

 to take it by force ? " An old Turkish officer of 

 his suite, addressing Dragut, thus continued, — 

 " See'st thou that bulwark which juts out in the 

 sea, and on which the Maltese have planted the 

 great standard of their order ? I can assure thee 

 that whilst I was a prisoner with them, I have helped 

 to carry the large stones of which it is built, and am 

 pretty sure that before thou canst make thyself 

 master of it, thou wilt be overtaken by the winter 

 season ; and probably likewise prevented from suc- 

 ceeding by some powerful succours from Europe." 

 There can be little doubt that this remark was 



