IT A L Y.. 



i himself justly dc tested by the tyranny of his 

 > ~*~.'~^ government, nml the brutality of his vices. The death 

 iifjNtpi: Clement, whose influence had in some decree 

 riMrn:ncd Ivis excesses, lift him completely at liberty, 

 and his conduct became so odious, that his cousin Lo- 

 ien/.ino di Medici, him.-elf an associate in his debauch- 

 intending perhaps to become his successor, took 

 ;in opportunity of assassinating him. But Lorenzino's 

 rns were Vru.-trated ; and although he was well re- 

 Ctived l-y Str<>//i and the exiles, the principal inhabi- 

 tants of Florence placed at the head of the govern- 

 ment COMIW di Medici, a youth of 1&, the only re- 

 maining legitimate descendant of the great Co>m<>, 

 and their choice w.is ratified by Charles, who confirmed 

 Cosmo in the dukedom. The emperor bestowed the 

 hand of his natural daughter, Margaret of Austria, the 

 widow of Alexander, on Octa-vio Farnese, the nephew 

 of the pope. 



War renew- ^ ne war ' n ' ta ty '"as again reqevred, by the refusal 

 ri, of Charles to bestow on Francis.' son, Charles duke of 



A.D. 154?. Orleans, the investiture of Milan, of which he had 

 given a promise, at one of his interviews with Francis 

 during the truce. On this occasion the dominions of 

 Charles were invaded by no less than five French ar- 

 mies. That in Piedmont was commanded by Anni- 

 baut, while the count of Enghien, aided by the fleet of 

 the coisair Hnyradin Barbarossa, besieged Nice, the 

 residence of the duke of Savoy. The arrival of the 

 imperial troops, under the Marquess del Guasto, how- 

 ever, obliged these extraordinary confederates to raise 

 the siege. 



Bittle of The following year was distinguished by the decisive 



Cerisoles. victory of the count d'Enghien over Guasto and the im- 

 A. 0. 1544. perjaiist^ with a very inferior force, at Consoles in 

 Piedmont. But Francis was too much weakened to 

 follow up the victory ; and its only result was the cap- 

 ture of a few towns in Piedmont. A treaty was at 

 Treaty of ] e ngth concluded at Crespy ; by which, among other 

 essy "' things, it was agreed, that Charles should confer on the 

 duke of Orleans the Milanese, and the hand of his 

 niece, the daughter of Ferdinand king of the Romans. 

 Birt the premature death of Charles of Orleans prevent- 

 ed the marriage, and gave the empsror an opportunity 

 of evading the fulfilment of the condition. In the mer.n 

 time, all hopes of reconciling the Protestants being at 

 an end, theiv tenets were condemned, and their persons 

 excommunicated, by the Council of Trent ; and their 

 armies defeated by the allied troops of the emperor and 

 the pope. But the latter, alarmed at the accession of 

 power acquired by Charles by the defeat of the reform- 

 ed princes, soon withdrew his troops, and devoted his 

 endeavours to the aggrandisement of his own family. 

 He first obtained for Octavio Farnese the city of Si- 

 enna, after having in vain attempted to get for him the 

 duchy of Milan. He next prevailed on the college of 

 cardinals to erect into a duchy the territories of Parma 

 and Placentia, which he conferred on his son Peter Lu- 

 dovico Farnese, a monster of vice and tyranny. But 

 the indignation of the Placentians soon roused them to 

 resistance, and this wretch was assassinated in the fbr- 

 Conspiracy tress of Placentia, which the conspirators immediately 

 f n^liiT seized '" tne name ot tlle emperor. 

 SeeKobert- ^ e same y ear was remarkable, by the failure of the 

 ,', conspiracy of Fiesco, count of Lavagna, against Andrew 



Charles V. Doria at Genoa; an event which it would be presump- 

 Dcath of tuous to relate in other words than those of Robertson, 

 J'Rul III. am ] f or which we refer our readers to the page of that 



} Var of 



sienna. 



elegant historian. The death of Paul III. followed seen HUwiy. 

 ;ii'ter that of his son. Sensible, probably, of the mis- """ *"Y~*" P 

 take lie had been guilty of, hs last act was -to reunite 

 Pnrtna to the states of the church. Ikwvas succeeded 

 by cardinal Dumont, a person of an effeminate and vo- 

 luptiKnis character, equally desirous with the late pope 

 to advance his family; but Paul had bestowed principa- 

 lities, Julius III. confined his donations to estates and 

 offices. The death of Francis I. occasioned a similar Death of 

 change in the court of France; for Henry II. though Francis I. 

 like his father ambitious and warlike, could be satisfied 

 with the pre-eminence in martial exercises, and feed 

 his ambition with the mimic victories of the tourna- 

 ment. 



An erent soon occurred, however, which drew the War of 

 French monarch into hostilities of a more serious na- Pwma. ^ 

 ture Octavio Farnese had, notwithstanding the decree A- Dr lo5 

 of his dying uncle, rrjadc himself master of Parma, with 

 the connivance of Julius, who was willing that ;;t least 

 it should be saved from falling into the emperor's hands; 

 but Charles, desirous of recovering this fief of the em- 

 pire, having bestowed the investiture on d'onzaga, go- 

 vernor of Milan, and Farnese having in vain requested 

 assistance from the pope, had recourse to the king of 

 France, who embraced his cause, and commenced a 

 war, which, however, produced no effect of consequence, 

 and the attention of both Charles and Henry were di- 

 verted for some time, to revolutions of greater interest, 



and wars of more vital importance. In the mean time, 



.1 n f, i- i* i- > , i . 



the power of Cosmo di Medici was daily increasing ; ,^_ rj_ 



the possession of Florence and Leghorn gave him the 

 key of what are called the fetters of Tuscany ; he had 

 also received the principality of Piombino; and his am- 

 bition was now turned to the acquisition of Sienna. 

 This ancient republic still retained its liberty, and, al- 

 though torn by factions during the late war, success- 

 fully defended itself against the imperial troops. The 

 aid afforded by Henry II. to the Siennese during this 

 contest, had raised a powerful party in favour of the 

 French in that city, a circumstance which excited the 

 jealousy of Charles and the alarms of Cosmo, who was 

 besides desirous to extinguish, in a state so near him, 

 the last sparks of that liberty, whose flame he had sup- 

 pressed at Florence. The emperor, willing to create a 

 diversion to the arms of Henry, now victorious in the 

 Netherlands, permitted Cosmo to undertake the con- 

 quest of Sienna. His army was commanded by John 

 James Medicino, marquess of Marigriano, a soldier of 

 fortune and of low birth, whom Cosmo flattered, by al- 

 lowing him to bear the arms of the Medici, and ac- 

 knowledging him a relation of the family. The French 

 and Siennese had, as their leader, Peter Strozzi, the son 

 of Philip, and Clarice di Medici, who maintained his 

 hereditary tone of liberty, and thorough detestation . . 

 of the enslavers of his country. The armies encoun- 

 tered near Marciano ; but the val6ur and impetu- 

 osity of Strozzi were foiled by the superior military 

 science of Medicino; and the former, weakened by a 

 dangerous wound, was forced to retreat with the feeble 

 remains of his troops, while his antagonist immediately 

 laid siege to the city of Sienna. The Siennese, encou- 

 raged by Monluc, commander of the French garri- 

 son, defended themselves with determined valour for 

 ten months, and at length capitulated on honourable 

 terms. 



These were not adhered to by Cosmo, who pro- 

 ceeded to new-model the government of the state, with- 



