ITALIAN GARDENS OF THE RENAISSANCE 



very halls which had been the home of her lamented 

 sister. 



For a long time Galeazzo remained faithful to 

 Bianca's memory, and refused many brilliant offers of 

 marriage, including one from Caterina Sforza, the 

 famous Madonna of Forli, who proposed to give him 

 her daughter's hand. But after his return to Milan 

 with the French, he married a lady of the house of 

 Carretto, the daughter of the Marchese del Finale, and 

 spent most of his time at Genoa. 1 He afterwards 

 became a great favourite of Francis I, and accompanied 

 this monarch in all his campaigns. But he still re- 

 mained on friendly terms with the Gonzagas, and was 

 always a welcome guest at the courts of Mantua and 

 Urbino. 



Castiglione, who had known Messer Galeaz in his 

 most triumphant days, when " the flower of the men of 

 this world were assembled in the Castello of Milan," 

 always looked upon him as a peerless knight, and 

 enshrined his name, as the mirror of chivalry, in the 

 pages of his Cortegiano. To the last Galeazzo retained 

 his courage and skill as a rider and jouster, until he 

 died, fighting by his royal master's side, on the fatal 

 field of Pavia. A young squire, who saw him fall from 

 his horse, rushed to the rescue, but the hero only shook 

 his head and told him that it was too late. " Go to the 



1 F. Sansovino, Delia Or igine delle famigli illustri d"> Italia, 316. 



198 



